Witch's Destiny
by mystery8icarus
Summary: Kairi wasn't exactly sure on how it happened. One moment she was living peacefully with her mother, the next moment she was with her 'aunt' so she could learn to control her new powers. Not to mention her having to attend a school with beings she thought were only in stories, and having to face a deadly dark evil. Why couldn't she be normal?
1. Prologue

**Hello one and all! I am Myst, the one and only! I haven't been around in a long while, so if you've forgotten little ol' me, well I don't blame ya. But I got an idea for an amazing story, and I want to share it with you! Be warned though, I may make mistakes...and I get a feeling it may have been overused. But we'll see how it goes. SO! Here we go!**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Kingdom Hearts. Or Final Fantasy. Why would a 14 year old like me own them, anyway? IT MAKES NO SENSE!**

* * *

It was a dark, yet peaceful night. The wind blew through the last few leaves on a nearby tree, causing them to fall like so many others had during the autumn season.

Inside a small cozy house, a young red haired women looked out into the night. In her hands was a warm cup of tea, which she sipped with shaking hands. She was waiting nervously for an old friend of hers to appear, and had been for an hour now.

She looked behind herself once more at the sleeping form on the couch by the blazing fireplace. She smiled as she watched her daughter dream before her worried look reappeared on her face. Her daughter was the reason she needed to meet her friend. But where could she be?...

Suddenly there was a soft knock on the door. The woman was startled, before she quickly placed down her tea and went to open the door. Her face look relieved as she saw who it was. "Oh Aqua, thank goodness. I was getting worried." she exclaimed to her friend.

Aqua, a young yet beautiful blue haired woman, smiled as she entered her friend's home. "I'm sorry I took so long, Vanille. The storm by my home held me up longer than I expected." she said. Her face then turned serious. "But onto business. Where is she?" she asked.

Vanille looked at her daughter's sleeping form, mutely answering her friend's question. As Aqua walked over to her daughter, Vanille bit her lip. "Aqua, just what shall I do if it turns out she has the gift? I couldn't help her on how to use it o-or how to control it-oh Aqua, what if she gets targeted?!" she cried out, frightened for her daughter.

Aqua looked at her old friend. "Vanille, I've never seen you like this. But you must calm down." "How can I, I mean, one moment she's playing with her dolls then-"

She stopped as Aqua got up from her kneeling place beside Vanille's daughter. "I have good news...and bad news." Aqua stated. "The good news is, she does NOT have the gift...not yet, at least."

"N-not yet?" Vanille whispered, eyes wide. Aqua nodded. "As she grows older, she may begin to show signs of having it. The signs will keep growing and growing, until at least she has her Awakening. But for now, she'll be like any normal child. You have nothing to fear right now, Vanille. But it's bad news, for as she gets near her sixteenth birthday..."

"The gift will then show up in her, and I will not be able to help her." Vanille finished, very bitter. She looked at Aqua with tear filled eyes. "Yet that's when she'll need me most. Oh Aqua, how I wish I still had the gift more than ever!" she cried out, before breaking out in a small sob.

Aqua's eyes filled with sympathy for her friend, before she handed her her hankerchief. "You gave up the gift so that your daughter-along with many others-could be safe. No one said this would be an easy path to restore the bonds between our kinds." she said softly.

Vanille blew her nose in the hankerchief before looking at Aqua. She smiled sadly. "True...at least she's safe. But Aqua, what shall I do? If I can't help her, then who will?" she asked. Suddenly her eyes widened, before she smiled with an idea in her mind. "Aqua, YOU could do it!" she exclaimed.

Aqua was startled at her friend's sudden enthusiasm. Then again, Vanille was known for her mood swings. "M-me? Oh Vanille, I don't know..." Aqua said hesitantly.

"Oh, but you must! You're the perfect one to do so! You know all the skills, you live near the school that will teach her all she needs to know, well, almost-and she knows you, and trusts you as she does her own mother! Which would be me, of course." Vanille said proudly.

"But Vanille, are you sure? She would have to live with me for an entire year to know the basic skills before she could return to you with the gift in control." Aqua said. "It wouldn't usually be a problem, but ever since Fang disappeared..."

She trailed off as Vanille took in a deep breath. She smiled cheerily. "Oh don't worry! I'm sure she'll turn up soon! And even if she doesn't, I'll be fine on my own."

"So don't worry-I know how to defend myself, even if I no longer have the gift! I just want my daughter to be safe." Vanille said, sounding serious at the last sentence.

Aqua looked at her friend's determined eyes before she sighed. "Very well, Vanille. I'll take in your daughter when the time comes." "OH THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!" Vanille cheered as she hugged her friend tightly. Aqua gasped. "Vanille, please let go. I can't breathe."

"Oh I'm so sorry! I'm just so happy!" Vanille cheered again as she let go. This time, it had been loud enough to wake her young daughter.

"Mm, Mommy?...is it time to go to school yet?" her 4 year old daughter asked sleepily as she got off. Her eyes widened as she saw Aqua. She then squealed. "AUNT AQUA!" she ran up to Aqua and hugged her tightly. Vanille gave Aqua an 'I told you so' grin as Aqua rolled her eyes before smiling at the little girl.

"Hello. I'm sorry we woke you up. Did you have a nice dream?" she asked. The red haired girl smiled happily. "Yep! I was in the sky, and I was flying! I was a little sad when I woke up, but it was a nice dream." she exclaimed. Aqua smiled. "That does sound like a nice dream." she replied.

"Hey Aunt Aqua, are you going to sleep over?' The girl asked, bright blue-purple eyes filled with hope. Aqua shook her head before she stood straight up.

"I'm afraid not. I have to go back home now. I'm sorry I couldn't stay much longer dear. But I promise I'll stay longer next time." she said, smiling at her.

The girl looked down, sad. "Aw..." she mumbled. Vanille smiled lovingly at her daughter as she ruffled her messy bedhead hair. "Oh don't worry sweetie. Aqua will come back very soon. Now, how about I read you a bedtime story to get you back to sleep?" Vanille suggested.

Her daughter's eyes widened with excitement. "Oh yes! Oh yes! I'd like that!" she exclaimed. "Then why don't you rush to your bed?" Her mother said, and the girl nodded excitedly before starting to run up the stairs to her bedroom.

"Wait dear! I have a gift for you." Aqua suddenly called out. She had been searching for something that she felt could help shield Vanille's daughter from any danger before she had her Awakening.

The girl blinked before she excitedly ran to Aqua. Vanille looked at Aqua curiously, but said nothing. Aqua then pulled a small clear pendant from her pocket before putting it around the girl's neck.

She smiled. "It's a necklace. I thought it'd be perfect for you. As long as you wear it, you'll be safe. Can you promise me to never take it off?" Aqua asked.

The girl looked at Aqua with wide eyes, before she smiled and nodded. "I promise!" she chirped. Aqua smiled. "Good. Now off to your bed for your story." she said, chuckling as the girl ran up to her room. She then looked at Vanille.

"Make sure she never takes it off, Vanille. That pendant contains a protection spell. As long as she wears it, she should be safe." Aqua said. Vanille blinked, before she smiled gratefully. "Of course...oh, thank you Aqua. How could I ever repay you?" she asked, but Aqua shook her head.

"You're my friend Vanille. I want her to be safe too." she stated softly. She started walking toward the door. "I must be going now, or else I'll never get home on time. Wish Kairi a good night from me?" Aqua asked, finally revealing the young girl's name.

Vanille smiled. "Of course I will. Have a safe journey home, dear friend." she said, before hugging her friend and walking upstairs to her daughter. As Aqua left the house, she could hear Kairi's eager voice.

"Mommy, Mommy, tell me the story about the witches and fairies!"

_One day, Kairi,_ Aqua thought, _you'll discover that you have a gift. And while your mother may not be able to lead you, I will do my best to take her place. _

* * *

**AND THAT'S THE FIRST CHAPTER! Or prologue, actually. I hope I did Vanille's personality alright, I've never done anyone like her before-or at least, not very much. So, what's this gift Aqua and Vanille were talking about? What does it have to do with Kairi? We'll find out...next time, where the story actually begins.**

**Please leave a review, I appreciate advice! Flames will be used to make s'mores. **


	2. The Encounter

**I HAVE RETURNED! Thanks for all the support so far, I really appreciate it. **

**Reviews:**

**_dario. flaman_-Little Kairi is always so cute. XD Thanks for the support! I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you!**

**_cutenessfan19_- *gasps* YOU! YOU! YOOOU! I REMEMBER YOU! It's been awhile since I last saw you! Heh, and again you become one of my first reviews on a story. Thanks! I hope I don't disappoint you either! **

**_Guest- _Oh thanks so much! I did my best for Vanille. Yeah, Aqua will have a bigger part later on, so this isn't the last you'll see of her. And, about Fang...*laughs nervously* I kinda messed up. I accidentally thought she was a guy, since I only glanced at her photo...DX After reading your review, I checked her profile and I was pretty embarrassed. Heh...don't worry, I fixed it! And thanks for letting me know my mistake.  
**

***mutters* Great, only one part in, and I already made a mistake. It's not even the first chapter!**

**Favs:**

**Thank you, _Drzhar, GameLord 4 BritishBronies, Nzguy20,_ and _dario. flaman_! You all believe in me! T_T It touches me that you do! So thank you!**

**And yes, I am very emotional.**

**Alerts: The same people as above, adding _attack on kronos _and _animalperson45_! Hope I don't disappoint you all!**

**And to the rest of you as well! YEAH!...that's all I got. :P**

**So, last time, we met Aqua, Vanille, and little Kairi. However, time has now passed since that night. So let's continue our tale...**

**Disclaimer: I DON'T own Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy. There. Happy?**

* * *

**_12 years later..._**

Vanille looked out at what had been a warm sunny day as the memory faded. _Has it really been that long?... _she thought, silently amazed at how time had flown. She looked around in her small home, noting all the photos that showed her and her daughter throughout the years. Birthday parties, vacations, regular visits to the mall...

Maybe she shouldn't be that surprised.

She then heard footsteps coming down from upstairs. A young auburn girl with indigo eyes came down, wearing a red frilled knee length dress with a small black belt along the waist. In her hands was a pair of short black heels. "I'm about to go, Mom!" Kairi said excitedly as she sat down on the steps to put on her heels.

Vanille blinked. "To where again?" she asked. "To the new club! Xion's supposed to pick me up soon!" Kairi exclaimed. Vanille frowned. "Oh, are you sure you'll be fine sweetie? Do you have your phone?"

"Yes, I do."

"Do you have emergency money?"

"Yes, I do."

"Do you have your can of pepper spray?"

"Yes."

"Do you know how to get back home?"

"Yeah."

"And do you remember what to do if you end up in danger?"

"Stop and try to run away and find help, but if that does not work then hit them in the back of their neck so they'll be knocked out cold." Kairi recited boredly before she sighed in slight annoyance. "Mom, nothing is gonna happen! You don't need to worry so much."

"Oh, I know honey. But you're almost 16-"

"So I should KNOW how to take care of myself. And I do!"

"Yes, but there can be people who might want to take advantage of you. I wouldn't even let you go to this club if it wasn't for the fact that you're having an early birthday party." Vanille said, sighing.

Kairi groaned. She loved her mom. Her mother was always very kind, and very cheery, able to find the bright side in the worst situations. She couldn't tell how many times her mother had been able to make her smile when she wanted to cry.

However, her mother was very protective of her. It was to the point where Kairi often felt as if she was being treated as a baby-and, being nearly 16 years old, she didn't want to be treated like that. Those were the times when she wished her mother would treat her like an adult.

This was one of those times.

"Mom, look at me." Kairi said, walking over to her mother. Despite her age, her mother still looked very young. Kairi had often wondered exactly what sort of skin care she used to keep it looking so young.

Her mother looked at her, worry in her eyes. Kairi smiled reassuringly at her. "I'll be fine. Xion will be with me, and I swear I won't leave her side. I won't drink any alcohol-not like I can-and any guy who comes near me will earn a punch to the face. Plus, we'll only be there until midnight. Then I promise to be back here and in bed. Trust me."

Vanille looked at Kairi. Then she sighed. "...alright. But please do be careful." She kissed Kairi on the top of her head, before she smiled cheerily. "Now, let's put on your make up, shall we? Oh, I know the perfect look for you!"

* * *

An hour later, Kairi stood on the outside of her home, waiting for her friend. She wasn't disappointed as a green van pulled up into the driveway. Kairi rolled her eyes as she walked over. She then opened the passenger door before looking in.

"Seriously Xion, you NEED to get your own car." Kairi said seriously at her friend.

Xion looked at her. "Hey, be glad we got a ride at all! My parents were REALLY hesitant at giving me the van after what happened last time!" she said, before smiling. "But enough about that-get in already!"

Kairi smiled before getting in. She had been friends with Xion ever since they were kids. Currently, Xion was wearing a black minidress with a matching bracelet and small black boots.

Xion smiled at her friend as she began driving to the club. "So, birthday girl, ready to party?" Kairi laughed. "I was born ready-even though it's not my birthday yet." she noted.

"Wait until you see my present. It'll be the best-and I mean THE best-present you'll ever get. No lie. Girl Scout's honor!" Xion exclaimed.

"Xion, you were never in the Girl Scouts."

"You know what I mean!"

They both laughed as the sky turned to a sunset. Xion sighed. "Man, what a sunset." she said.

Kairi smiled. "It is beautiful. Say, Xion, why do you like sunsets so much?" she asked.

"I don't know. There's something about it that just makes me want to look at it until it ends. Like right now..." Xion said dreamily as she stared at the sunset. This caused Kairi to panic.

"Xion! Keep your eyes on the road!" she yelled as Xion started to drift on the opposite lane. Xion laughed as she drove back in the correct lane. "Chill out Kairi, I was just kidding!"

""I swear, it's a miracle you got a driver's license."

"Aw come on Kairi, have some more trust in me!"

"How can I when you're trying to kill me?"

"It's all in good fun, Kairi, all in good fun." Xion laughed. Then she got a thoughtful look on her face. "Or maybe it has to do with those fairy-tales your mom used to tell us..."

Kairi blinked. "The fairy-tales? But Xion, you know they aren't real."

"I know, but those stories were so...realistic, you know?" Xion smiled. "It was as if they WERE real. Then we'd beg your mom to tell us another story. I'd always fall asleep dreaming I was in those tales. I guess it sort of led to my fascination of sunsets." She looked at Kairi for a moment. "Cause, you know, sunsets have a sort of magical look to them."

Kairi thought about it for a moment. "I guess so," she admitted, "my mom has a ton of creativity. I just wish I had some of it." She sighed.

Xion stared at her. "Are you kidding me Kairi? You're pretty creative!" she exclaimed. "I doubt it's as great as my mom's." Kairi said. She sighed again.

"AHA! TWO SIGHS! That's it, start cheering up and put a smile on your face Kairi, cause today we are here to party! And here we are!~" Xion exclaimed as the club came into sight.

The club, named Hallow Bastion, had just recently opened the week before. But already, people were straining to get in. The line was long, stretching for what seemed to be 3 blocks.

Kairi groaned as she saw the line. "Oh great...we're going to be there FOREVER! What a way to spend an early birthday..." she mumbled.

Xion chuckled as she parked the van near the club. "Sheesh Kairi. Didn't know you had that much faith in me." She said as she got out of the van.

Kairi raised an eyebrow before she got out as well. Xion winked at her as they walked toward the bouncer. Xion smiled.

"Hello there! My friend and I here need to get in." Xion said. She then got out a white card. "As you can see, we're VIPs." she said as she gave it to the bouncer.

The bouncer looked it over before he nodded and unblocked the way. Kairi's jaw was dropped as they went in. "What-how did you-"

"Never underestimate my powers of connections!" Xion declared. She smiled at her. "You're my best friend, Kairi-therefore, you shouldn't have anything less than the very best on this day!-er, night, actually." Xion added as she looked outside. Kairi laughed.

"Thanks Xion." Kairi said, feeling warm inside. She had never thought Xion would do something like this. Who knew what she had to do to get that card? For, it was discovered that the club issued special cards for people for special events.

A blue card mean you could eat anything at the bar. A red card meant you could go onstage and sing with the band. The white cards, however, were the most rare. They made people who had them 'VIPs', people who could get in very easily and practically do anything they wanted in there.

Xion noticed her friend's stunned look and laughed while rolling her eyes. "Geez Kairi, now's not the time to go to Dreamland! It's the time to PARTY!" she yelled.

Kairi snapped out of it before looking at her friend. She grinned. "Alright then-shall we dance?"

"Indeed we shall!"

* * *

Kairi collapsed into a chair at the bar, out of breath. She and Xion had been at the club for probably 3 and a half hours now. And most of that time had been taken up by dancing.

Even now, she could see Xion was still out there dancing away. Kairi looked at her aching feet and decided to take a break. _Why did I chose to wear heels? _she wondered as she took her heels off. _I could've brought a pair of flats, at least. _

As she looked around, she blinked. Did she just see something...flicker? Like wings? She blinked again, and saw the flicker disappear. _Now that was strange... _she thought. She shook her head. She was tired-she could've imagined it. But it looked so real...

"Hey there, cutie."

Kairi's head turned immediately to a boy on her left. He had blonde spiky hair, and the most brightest blue eyes she had ever seen. He was dressed in black-black shirt, black jeans, even black sneakers. The only thing not black was a white ring on his left hand-which was paired with a black ring as well.

Kairi looked at him. "Um...hi. Who are you?" she asked warily. Although she had promised her mom to punch any guy in the face should he get near, it would seem a bit rude.

The boy smiled. "I'm Roxas. May I know what your name is, cutie?" he asked, winking at her. Kairi rolled her eyes before she answered. "My name is Kairi. Nice to meet you, Roxas." she said.

She had hoped he'd leave at this point, but Roxas stayed instead. He sat in the stool next to her. He smiled again. "Kairi...now that's a nice name. So, tell me Kairi, what brings you to Hallow Bastion?"

Kairi answered again, staying on her guard. "I came here with a friend to celebrate my 16th birthday. Of course, it doesn't happen for a few more days, but we couldn't wait that long." She smiled.

Roxas seemed to smile bigger. "Really? Well congratulations. And happy early birthday."

They continue to chat, and slowly, Kairi began to open up to Roxas. She did originally think he might've wanted to hurt her, but he seemed to be intent instead on getting to know her. _Perhaps he wants to be friends? _

"Say, Kairi, want to go outside for a bit? It's getting pretty hot in here." Roxas said, waving his hand for some cool air. "Sure. The exit's blocked though." Kairi noted, as she got down from her stool. Was it just her, or was it still pretty cool in the club?...

"Don't worry. I know another way out." And with that, Roxas grabbed Kairi's wrist, bringing her to a hidden door that led outside.

Once they were outside (and after Kairi's eyes had adjusted to the natural light), she noticed they were in the back of the club, where it was pretty dirty.

After Roxas let go of her wrist, she winced and rubbed it. "Yikes. You have a strong grip, Roxas...Roxas?" She looked around, but the boy was nowhere to be seen.

"Roxas?...Roxas, where are you? This isn't funny." Kairi said, her voice getting a bit louder in alarm. She then heard a chuckle right behind her. She turned and saw Roxas. However, he looked different.

In a bad way.

"Gotcha." He merely said, grinning, before charging toward her with his fangs bared.

* * *

**AND THAT'S WHERE WE'LL LEAVE IT OFF! Yeah! I did what you think I did! I FREAKING LEFT YOU ON A CLIFFHANGER! OH! *fistpumps* I have no regrets. XD HOLY GUACAMOLE! What's gonna happen to Kairi?! Will she live? And if so, just HOW? I think she's doomed. **

**Try to see if you can guess who Roxas really is. And by that, I don't mean like identity-cause that IS Roxas-but like...creature. It's pretty obvious, but I'd like to know your guesses.**

**Please leave a review! Again, I appreciate advice. I BURN! WITH LE FLAMES! AND LE S'MORES!...just go with it. XD**


	3. The Reveal

**WELCOME BACK! So, I am quite flattered you guys. Again, thanks for all the support!**

**Reviews:**

_**cutenessfan19-**_**I'm SO glad I didn't disappoint ya! And as for Roxas...*shrugs* Maybe~**

_**Nzguy20- **_**THANK YOU! :D**

_**InnocentSerenade- **_**Yeah, it was pretty disturbing, wasn't it? *laughs* Oh my gosh, if they WERE related...well don't worry, Roxas DOES have an explanation! Or at least, someone else does. XD I HAVE NO REGRETS ON LEAVING YOU ON THE TIGHTROPE!...it's up to you to decide.**

_**dario. flaman-**_** MWAHAHAHAHA! *evilly laughs before laughing like usual* Aw, don'cha worry! Kairi's death will be quick and painless. XD Actually, read on to find out what happens to her! Be glad this update is quick!**

**Favs: We now add _In__nocentSerenade _and _CirciFox81314! _Thank you guys! T_T YOU DO CARE CIRCI! XD I've missed ya.**

**Follows: We add...the same two people as before! THANK YOU ONCE MORE!**

**So last time, we were witnessing Kairi about to be attacked by Roxas, a guy she met at the club! Now, who knows what she's going to do?...**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy. I DO OWN MAH 3DS!**

* * *

Kairi's eyes widened as Roxas lunged at her. Then, she heard someone shout.

"STAY AWAY FROM MY BEST FRIEND YA FREAK!"

Xion ran in and shoved Roxas down to the ground, just seconds before he would've tackled Kairi down. Kairi looked shaken up.

"Xion?! How did you-" Xion got up and ran to her before grabbing her wrist to drag her away. "Never mind! Let's just get out of here!" she shouted as they ran to Xion's van.

Suddenly, a wind blew right past them. They both froze as they saw Roxas standing in front of them blocking their way to the van. He scowled at Xion. "Now why the hell did you have to do that?" he asked as he brushed off some dirt on his jeans.

Xion glared, ignoring his sudden appearance. "I don't know who you are, but you were gonna hurt my friend-and NO ONE hurts my friends." she said defiantly.

Kairi was staring at Roxas. "Who are you really?..." she asked softly. Roxas looked at her before grinning. Xion gasped as she saw his fangs.

"I told you-my name's Roxas. I'm, oh, I'd say 117 years old now. And I'm rather hungry right now. Of course, I'm not the only one. Good thing there's two of you." he answered as figures in the shadows slowly slunk to them.

Xion was bewildered. "117? But...that's impossible!" "Wait...your age...your fangs...are you...a vampire?" Kairi asked, in mixed shock and horror.

Roxas grinned. "Correct. And I'm not the only one." Xion and Kairi looked around to see the figures come into view, showing other people in black with fangs.

Xion was the first to react. "GO KAIRI GO!" she yelled before started pulling her friend to try and run away. However, their way was blocked by more of the group appearing.

Xion glared at them. "Stay back! I know karate!" she yelled defiantly. Despite that, Kairi could sense her friend's fear. She looked at the club. _How are they not noticing this?! _she wondered in alarm.

_Wait...could they have possibly shifted the shadows so that no one could see or hear us? If so...we're doomed. _Kairi thought in despair. She noticed two of the vampires get near her. She immediately got out her can of pepper spray before spraying one in the face.

"AHH! I CAN'T SEE! I CAN'T SEEEE!" he yelled. As the other vampire was distracted, Kairi punched him hard in the face, knocking him into the first vampire. She noticed a few more coming up behind her.

She sprayed two with pepper spray as well before she punched them in the face. The other charged her, only to catch nothing as she ducked down and he tripped over her. He ended up faceplanting into the ground, getting stunned.

Kairi smiled at the sight before she was caught from behind. She screamed, and thrashed around to get free, but her arms were pinned behind her. She realized it was Roxas who had grabbed her.

She watched in dismay as the others grabbed Xion as well, while the vampires they had knocked down were slowly getting back to their feet.

Roxas chuckled by her ear, making her flinch. "My, what a feisty duo you both make. You'll be quite delicious, I hope. How about you go first? Think of it as my form of a birthday present." he whispered, before starting to lean down to her neck.

"Kairi NO!" Xion screamed, trying her hardest to break free. Kairi closed her eyes, a grim calm settling over her. This was it.

She was going to die.

And so would Xion.

Xion...no.

No.

NO!

She opened her eyes, suddenly filled with fury. They started to glow. "You will NOT hurt me or my friend!" she yelled. And her pendant glowed white as red sparks flew from her fingers. It burned Roxas, making him let go, and cry out in pain.

The pendant's glow was bright, causing the other vampires to flinch, letting go of a stunned Xion in the progress.

Roxas hissed at the light, shielding his eyes. "Retreat! Retreat!" he yelled to the others before disappearing into the shadows along with them.

Kairi glared at him, until the glow in her eyes faded along with the pendant. She stared at her fingers, the sparks now gone.

_What...how?... _

"Kairi..." Xion spoke, staring at her friend in shock. "What did you do?...HOW did you?..." she trailed off. After staring at her hands for awhile longer, Kairi looked back at her friend. Her eyes were filled with shock and confusion, along with slight fear.

"I have no idea." she whispered.

Xion started to walk toward her friend to comfort her, when her eyes widened.

"KAIRI LOOK OUT!" she yelled as one of the vampires came back to try and attack Kairi from behind.

Kairi gasped as she turned around. She knew she wouldn't be able to defend herself as he lunged at her.

Suddenly, the vampire was struck down in the back. He tried to get up, and turned to face his attacker, but a fireball hit him in his face and he cried in pain, before he got up and ran off.

Vanille was standing there, holding a strange staff. The staff's head resembled a pair of antlers while its body had four long wires with hooks. She looked at Kairi and Xion, before walking to Xion's van. She looked at them.

"Come on. We're going home." she said in a serious voice.

* * *

After Xion dropped Vanille and Kairi off (and after Vanille made her swear not to tell anyone what she had seen), they went inside the cottage. As soon as they did, Kairi exploded with questions.

"Mom, how did you attack the vampire? Why do you have a staff? How was I able to fight back the vampires? How come the vampires are real? WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" Kairi shouted.

Vanille looked at her daughter, before she sighed. She sat down, suddenly looking very tired. Kairi frowned in worry, but kept standing. She looked at her mother. "Mom...please tell me. I need to know." she begged softly.

Vanille looked at her daughter, whose face looked scared and confused. She sighed again. "Kairi...remember all those stories I used to tell you and Xion when you were young? Well, as you can tell, they weren't just stories. They're real." she said.

Kairi blinked in shock. "But...how?" She asked weakly.

"Well, a very long time ago, humans and the Fae-that's what we were called as a whole-used to live alongside with each other peacefully. However, some of the Fae grew corrupted, and began attacking the humans."

"This caused the humans to become frightened of us-and, due to their fear, hate us. It grew to the point where many of the Fae were getting killed. It was no longer safe to stay near humans. So the Fae left." she explained.

"We stayed in hiding for a long time. Then, we slowly began coming back to the humans-however, we decided to keep our true natures secret, to not cause them alarm. Meanwhile, because of our disappearance, the humans soon began to forget we ever existed, and now to them, we only exist in fairytales."

Kairi looked at her mother. "You said we." she noted. Vanille smiled sadly.

"Yes...for you see Kairi, I am a witch. And you are too." she replied. She looked at her staff. "That's why I have this staff. That's how I got to where you and Xion were so quickly. And that's how you were able to fight back the vampires."

Kairi was stunned. "...why would you...never tell me this?" she asked, hurt. "I could've used whatever powers I have to protect Xion and I!" she cried out.

Vanille closed her eyes. "I wanted you to have a peaceful life, Kairi. And the only way for you to have that was to live like a human, never knowing your true nature." she said. She opened her eyes again, and Kairi could see they were filled with tears.

"I lost my best friend..." she whispered, "And I lost your father. You were the only one I had left that I truly loved...I wanted you to be safe and sound."

"Kairi...you have the gift...the gift of magic. I knew signs of it would begin to show as you grew older, nearer to 16. That will be when your Awakening takes place." Vanille said.

"My...Awakening? What's that?"

"The Awakening is when witches-and other beings who use magic-will be of age to have full use of their magical abilities. Of course, that's when they are most vulnerable, and yet most dangerous, for they don't have full control of their magic yet." Vanille's eyes saddened.

"It's at this time that their parents help teach them on how to control their magic, and how to keep it hidden. They also ensure they are safe until they have full control over their abilities. And that...is where I can't help you, Kairi." she said.

"Wait, what?! Why-" "Let's just say something happened a while before you were even born, and I was forced to perform a very powerful spell. This spell, while it saved many lives, made me use so much magic that I...I lost my full ability to use magic." She smiled sadly at Kairi.

"So you could say you and I are now at the same skill level, Kairi...that's how I made the fireball. However, it cost me much energy due to not having my full power as I did before."

Kairi stared at her mother. Finally she whispered, "So...who will teach me?"

"Do you remember Aqua dear? It's been a while since she last visited, so maybe you might not." Vanille said.

Kairi frowned. The name did sound familiar...suddenly in her mind, a fuzzy memory appeared. It had a blue haired woman, with blue eyes, smiling at her as she held her pendant in her eyes.

Kairi subconsciously touched her pendant. "Aqua...Aunt Aqua...she gave me my pendant, didn't she?" Kairi asked. Vanille smiled, and nodded.

"She did, when you were 4. You see, that was the first time you showed signs of having magic. You were playing with your dolls-then you ended using so much energy in making them move mid air that you collapsed and fell asleep. It gave me such a fright." she explained.

"That pendant has a protection spell on it. It's been keeping your safe ever since you were young." Kairi blinked in surprise, finally realizing why her mother would insist she keep it on.

"Anyway...Aqua is also a witch. She will be teaching you the basics on how to control your powers. However, you will also have to attend a school so that you'll learn more about our world-and your powers as well. For that, you'll have to go and live with Aqua...for a year."

"A YEAR?! As in, a WHOLE year?! But I can't, Mom! I still have so many things to do here! And what about my friends?! You can't expect me to leave Xion behind!" Kairi yelled, before another thought came to her. "Or YOU! You'll be alone! Mom, how can you do this?!"

Vanille smiled at her again. "I already told you Kairi-I will do anything to keep you safe. And right now, that means you must learn to control your powers."

"Don't worry about me-I know how to defend myself. But now, you must-"

"No!" Kairi glared at her. "You can't force me to just leave you here! We can figure something out! Maybe, you could dig up whatever tools you use to help teach me, and, we can, we can adapt them to you so you'll still be able to teach me! I won't leave Mom! I won't!" she yelled.

"Kairi...do you think I will let you go to Aqua if I could teach you?" Vanille asked quietly. "Do you really think I would let you go off somewhere where there will be people who may hurt you, and where you'll be in danger?" She looked at her.

"The answer is no. I want to keep you here Kairi, I truly wish I can-but despite all the books I've looked at, all the techniques-the best way for you to truly control your powers is if I can use magic as well."

"That being said, maybe we could both search for a school for you to attend to around here if I still had magic-but you need both the school and someone to guide you if your powers can be in full control."

"This is hurting me as much as it is hurting you, Kairi. But what other choice do we have?"

Vanille smiled at her daughter, tears in her eyes. "...I know this is a lot to take in, but...you must believe me, for your own sake."

Kairi looked down, contemplating what she had just heard. At first, it seemed hard to believe, but the more she thought about it, the more it made sense. It explained her mother's overprotectiveness.

It explained why sometimes she seemed to see things others could not. It explained her faint memories from when she was young on how she seemed to do the impossible.

And it explained on what had happened on that night. Finally, Kairi spoke. "Mom...if I did have the signs when I was young...why did they stop until now?" she asked.

"To be honest, it was because of me. In order for you to remain unaware of your powers, I would often sprinkle or mix in a special dust in your food. The dust would suppress your powers, so you wouldn't be able to use them even if you were startled. I knew though, the dust would no longer work as you grew older. But I'm glad it stopped working today, or else you would've been hurt."

Kairi nodded, deciding not to question where her mother had gotten the dust. She walked over to her mother, and sat down in front of her. "...alright Mom. I'll go. But...I'll still be able to visit you, right?" she asked.

Vanille looked at her and smiled. "Of course dear. You're my daughter-no one can keep you away from me." And with that, she hugged Kairi tightly before she got up. "I'll send a message to Aqua so she can come. I suggest you start packing." Vanille said, smiling sadly. Kairi nodded, before she went upstairs.

Vanille watched her go up, feeling something in her nearly break. Despite that, she put on a bright smile, before starting to call Aqua's number. She then said cheerily, "Hello Aqua! How are you?"

After Aqua said something, Vanille smiled sadly. "Ah, I see. Well, do you remember that promise you made 12 years ago? Well, it's time for you to fulfill it."

There was some silence before Aqua spoke again. Vanille beamed. "You can come in 2 days? Well...alright then. The sooner the better! Can't wait to see you soon. Bye for now!" She then hung up.

She looked out the window, still smiling. Then tears began streaming down her face before she sat down and started to silently cry.

* * *

"Wait, seriously?!"

It was 2 days after the club incident. Kairi was coming home from school with Xion. She nodded. "Apparently I have to go and live with my aunt for awhile. That's why you saw me cleaning out my locker earlier." Kairi admitted.

Xion looked devastated. "But...who will I hang out with? Share all my secrets? Run like hell from an angry mob if it should ever happen?" she asked.

Kairi smiled slightly. "You'll be fine, Xion. It's only for a year anyway. I'll be back before you know it." She then looked at Xion. "Besides, it's not like you can't visit from time to time. Where I'm going, it's really close-like say, half an hour away."

Xion groaned. "There's no FREAKING WAY my parents will let me borrow the car for that long." She looked at Kairi. "Speaking of it, that reminds me...WHAT THE HELL WAS UP WITH THOSE VAMPIRES GUYS?!" she yelled.

"SHH! Quiet Xion! Even walls have ears." Kairi warned. She then explained to Xion what Vanille had told her. She believed Xion deserved to know what had happened. However, she decided to leave out the part that all the other mythological creatures were also real.

After she finished, Xion blinked. "So...they're the only ones? Well that's good! But what about those weird sparks?" Xion asked, curious. Kairi bit her lip. "We're going to try and find a way to control them. That's why I'm going away for a bit. I don't want to accidentally fry you, you know!" she said, putting in a laugh.

She wasn't really lying. Just leaving out part of the truth.

Xion slowly nodded. "Well...alright...I'm still gonna miss you though. So will everyone else." she said sadly. Kairi smiled sadly. "I will too."

"Promise to call me every day?"

"Promise."

"Promise to let me know when to visit?"

"Promise!"

"...Promise to not forget me?" Xion looked at Kairi seriously. Kairi looked back before smiling and linked her pinky with Xion's.

"I promise."

And as they stood in front of Kairi's home, the two friends hugged and said goodbye, knowing it will be awhile until they saw each other once again.

* * *

**Sniff...I'm sorry, I just always get sad whenever friends have to leave each other. Especially since it's pretty personal with me. *sighs before smiles* SO! Kairi now knows who she really is! And now, she's about to go and meet Aqua! What's gonna happen as she goes to her new home? Who will she meet? And just what will she discover? ONLY ONE WAY TO FIND OUT! WE GO TO THE FUTURE!**

**...or read the next chapter. XD Please leave a review! Advice is appreciated! Flames will be extinguished with water!**


	4. The First Day

**HELLO AGAIN! Now...uh...is anyone pumped for new games that'll come out? Cause I am SO pumped for KH3, Super Smash Bros. 3DS, etc. Just want to know.**

_**InnocentSerenade- **_***chuckles* Don't you worry. This isn't the last time Xion will appear here. I've got it all planned out. *grins*It WAS a good thing Kairi didn't die back at that vampire attack. Otherwise this story would've ended far too early. Mystericchi, eh? Heh-reminds me of macaroni for some reason. XD And I'll remember that little note.**

_**Nzguy20-**_** Wait and see~ I'm pretty sure you can guess what he'll be, though.**

_**CirciFox81314-**_** Thank you! I tried to do my best on the reveal. EVERYONE FEELS BAD FOR XION! Don't worry she'll return. Oh, I see. Well that's ok. Glad to know you care! :D**

_**cutenessfan19-**_** YAY! CONGRATULATIONS! :D If I had a prize, I would give it to you. But I don't, so...**

**Favs:**

**Joining the fan army is _cutenessfan19 _and _Ruby Warrior Girl 730! _Thank you both so much!**

**Follows:**

**We now add _cutenessfan19, emeraldruby101, _and _DeathOnWings1203! _*waves* HAI!**

**SO! Last time, Kairi discovered she was a witch! Now, she must leave her home and all that she has ever known in order to learn how to control her new powers. Wonder what will happen?...**

**Disclaimer: *sings* I don't own Kingdom Hearts! Nor do I own Final Fantasy!~ SO STOP. THINKING. THAT I. DO! *gives the camera an annoyed look***

* * *

Kairi shivered, though not from the wind as she waited by the large oak tree on her street. By her side was a large suitcase, a smaller suitcase, and in her arms was a duffel bag. On her back was her backpack, also filled with her things.

It was almost 7 o'clock-the time Aqua would arrive. She was supposed to meet with Aqua right here. Kairi was nervous-she honestly didn't know what to expect. Would she fly down on a broom? Appear from out of thin air? Or maybe she'll-

"Hello Kairi."

Kairi practically jumped out of her skin in fright. "AHH!" She turned around to where the voice had come from. The voice chuckled.

"I'm sorry if I startled you. My, you've grown since I last saw you." As those words were spoken, a blue haired woman walked forward, smiling gently at her.

She had gentle blue eyes, and was wearing a regular black sleeveless turtleneck, with pale blue jeans and low black boots. Over her turtleneck she wore a sky blue shawl.

Kairi blinked. "Um...Aunt Aqua?" she asked. The woman nodded, and smiled. "That's correct. Though, I'm sure you know I'm not your actual aunt." She grabbed the large and small suitcases. "Now, just follow me to my car."

"Uh..." Kairi was surprised, and slightly disappointed. "Your...car? But aren't you a...you know?" she asked.

Aqua looked back at her. "Think about it Kairi. If I came here using magic, do you know much attention it would attract?" She looked away. "We have learned how to adapt to most of human technology, though some things still escape our grasp."

"...oh." Was all Kairi could say in response. Aqua noticed and smiled at her. "Don't worry, it wasn't something you would know. You'll learn quickly."

Kairi smiled back, feeling reassured. As they placed her suitcases in the car's trunk, Kairi took one last look at her neighborhood. Then she took a deep breath and got inside the passenger seat of the car.

As they started to drive away, and with Kairi's hometown soon far behind them, Kairi started to ask a few questions.

"So...exactly where are we going?" she asked.

Aqua answered, "We're going to my hometown-your mother's hometown as well. Its name is Dissidia. It's very well hidden from mortal eyes, so many mythical creatures live there. However, they can leave and therefore live among humans if they wish."

"What if they commit a crime?" Kairi asked, curious.

"Criminals have a chance of being exiled from our world."

Kairi was startled. "Exiled? How?"

"When you are exiled, you can end up losing your immortality, your powers and magic, anything that made you one of the Fae. Some end up having less power, like your mother. It depends how harsh the crime was."

"Usually in the end, you'd still have some special traits that remain or live longer than the usual mortal. But they must live among mortals, never to return to the Fae world at all." Aqua replied calmly.

"But...that seems really harsh. To be exiled from your home...from the only world you've ever known...that's just cruel." Kairi said, looking saddened. Aqua looked at her before sighing sadly.

"I know. But in the eyes of the Council, harshness is needed to keep the peace."

Kairi sighed. She looked out at the passing scenery of trees and fields. "...so, what is it like in Dissida?"

Aqua smiled. "It's like your average town-only the Fae live there instead of mortals. So you'll see plenty of things you would not see in other mortal towns. We are controlled by the Council, a group of composed of the strongest and wisest members of each species of Fae."

"There are 11 representatives. One for the following main species: werewolves, vampires, witches and warlocks, angels, demons, merpeople, fairies, dwarves, elves and the final one, trolls and ogres."

"The Angels are an exception, having two representatives. You'll learn why. By using assistants, they help run the settlements and keep them safe." she explained.

She suddenly smiled. "Ah, we're getting close." She turned around a corner in the path to a road that had a railing cutting it off from the main road. Kairi grew nervous.

"Aqua? You see the railing right?"

"Oh yes."

"Why are we driving straight toward it?"

Aqua chuckled. "Trust me Kairi, we won't get hurt." And with that, she drove headfirst into the railing.

Kairi gasped and covered her eyes, waiting for the impact. However, when it never came, she uncovered one eyes before gasping.

In front of them was not a road that led to a forest, but a road to a bustling city. "W-what? But...wait, was it an illusion?" she asked.

Aqua nodded while smiling. "Feast your eyes Kairi-welcome to Dissidia, your new home for the next year."

* * *

Meanwhile, a girl was laying in a tree, taking a nap. She had long black hair tied in a ponytail. Two strands of her hair framed her face. She wore a purple shirt with lantern sleeves, dark blue jeans, and a pair of brown knee high boots.

She started to awaken when she heard a car pull in the driveway next door. She opened her eyes sleepily as she looked through the remaining leaves on the tree before her eyes widened.

It was Aqua-but she had someone else with her. As she watched, the red haired girl got her suitcases before following Aqua into her house. Curious, the ravenette decided to pay her a visit.

* * *

"Whoa." Kairi said as she looked around the larger house with wide eyes. "I didn't know you had a big house."

Aqua chuckled. "It's not that big, compared to the other houses in the neighborhood." she said as she walked toward the kitchen. "There's three floors-the second floor has a guest bedroom." she called out.

"Thanks!" Kairi yelled back before walking up the staircase to the second floor. She walked down the hall until she found an empty bedroom. It had a bed, a dresser with a tv, and a large window that let in a lot of sunlight.

Kairi smiled before she put down her bags in the room. _Well...looks like this really is happening. _She thought, reality finally setting in. She sat on the bed, before searching through her bags.

She took out a picture frame of her and her mother, setting it down on a nightstand by the bed. She smiled at it.

_I'll be home sooner than you think... _

Suddenly, she heard a loud knocking from the window. She turned around and saw a black haired girl sitting in the tree beside it. The girl grinned as she met her eyes and gestured for her to open the window.

"Um...who are you?" Kairi asked warily as she opened the window. The girl grinned, her blue eyes gleaming with mischief.

"Your new best friend!~" Was the only reply she got before she reached in, and pulled Kairi out of the window.

Aqua walked up the bedroom. "Kairi, what would you like for dinner? I could order take out, or-" She stops, seeing the bedroom being empty and the window being wide open. She sighed, before smiling slightly.

"Bring her back soon, Aura..."

* * *

Kairi screamed as she fell and landed into the bushes. The girl laughed as she jumped down beside her, landing on her feet.

"Sorry about the fall! Thought it'd be faster than using the door." The girl quiped.

Kairi sat up, before glaring at her. "Ok, who the heck are you?! And say your name this time!" she demanded.

The girl held her hands up in a peace gesture. "Hey, hey, calm down. Look, I'm sorry-I didn't mean any harm to you. It gets real lonely around here, considering up to now there weren't any witches my age!" she said.

Kairi blinked in surprise. "You're a witch too?" she asked. The girl grinned.

"Yep! Oh wait-I haven't even said my name yet! Heh, sorry about that." she apologized. "The name's Aura, Aura Piras! Nice to meet ya." she said, grinning cheerily.

"I'm Kairi-Oerba Dia Kairi. How did you know I was a witch?" Kairi questioned. Aura grinned. "I saw you come here with Aqua. Since Aqua's the only other witch who lives here, I figured you were too."

"You mean, there aren't many witches in Dissidia?" Kairi asked, surprised. Aura shook her head. "Nope. Only my Dad, me, Aqua, and a few others. Oh, and you now." Aura added sheepishly.

She walked onto the sidewalk. "Come on! I'll show you around while we talk!" she exclaimed. They began to walk onto the sidewalk, with Aura in the lead.

"Wow...I didn't know not very many of us live here. Why is that?" Kairi asked. Aura shrugged. "Not sure myself. My Dad always said it had something to do with a series of battles that happened here."

"Battles?"

"Yeah, battles. Sometimes certain species here start to fight each other. Vampires and werewolves, for example. But the ones Dad talked about were between witches, and warlocks only. Don't know the exact details though...hopefully we'll learn about it once school starts." Aura looked at her, before grinning.

"You and I are probably going to Fantasia Academy." she said confidently. Kairi blinked. "What makes you say that?" she asked.

"Well, it's the only school around here that still teaches witches and warlocks their training. Though, it'll be interesting, considering there haven't been much young witches or warlocks such as you and I for a very long time." Aura noted.

"Have you met any others?" Kairi asked. Aura nodded. "Oh yeah! But uh, only in passing. You're the first one that I've officially met! And so...I say we get to know each other! Hey Kairi, what's your favorite candy?"

And with that, they began to chat and learn more about each other. For instance, Kairi learned that Aura was a prankster who loved to use her magic to pull tricks. However, she always made sure no one would get hurt.

Aura was surprised to find that Kairi had only recently learned about her powers. She reassured her that she'd learn quickly and would easily fit in.

"Of course, there are some people who for some reason decide to act like complete idiots and try to insult others. Just know that if that happens, it means they're jealous. And to tell me so we can plan a revenge plan." Aura added, scoffing.

Kairi smiled. "Alright...hey, where are we now?" she asked, looking around. They had walked to into the main part of the city, and all around them were various stores and restaurants.

At the front was a large white building that reminded Kairi of a bank. It had the marble pillars at its front, and LOTS of stairs. Aura grinned.

"Why, we're at Radiant Square! It's the place to be whenever something important is going on, or you just want to hang out with friends!"

She pointed at the white building. "That's Enix Hall. It's where meetings are held whenever the Council has something to say, and also where trials are held. Right now though, it's closed. All business in there is over...for now." she commented.

Suddenly she gasped. Kairi looked at her. "What is it, Aura?" she asked. She was staring at something behind Kairi. Kairi turned to look as well, and could only see a man wearing a red cloak.

He had black messy hair held up by a red bandanna, and when she looked closer, she could see he had crimson red eyes. He looked to be wearing black clothes under his cloak, and she was startled to see his left arm looking to be mechanical.

"Holy crud...that's Vincent Valentine! He's the representative for the vampires on the Council! What's he doing here?..." Aura questioned under her breath. Kairi blinked before she looked back at Vincent.

He was standing in the shadows of a couple of trees, looking to be talking with two people around the same age as him. _Or at least, same physical age, _Kairi added.

She watched as he walked away from the two. At that moment, Aura looked closer and grinned. "YO! CLOUD! TIFA! WHAT WERE YOU GUYS TALKING ABOUT?!" she yelled as she dragged Kairi toward the two.

One of them, a blond spiky haired man with startlingly blue eyes looked over at Aura before sighing. "It's nothing that concerns you, Aura." he stated. "Aw come on Cloud, I can keep a secret!" Aura exclaimed.

"No." was Cloud's flat reply. The other person, a dark brown haired woman whose hair was tied in a ponytail-and had a very large chest-rolled her red-brown eyes. "Oh Cloud, it can't hurt to tell. Besides, you know she won't let up until you do tell her." she joked, smiling.

Cloud sighed. "Alright...but you better not tell anyone." he said, glaring slightly at Aura, before he noticed Kairi. "Who are you?" he questioned. "This is Kairi! She's new in town, and she's a witch like me!" Aura exclaimed, grinning.

Kairi smiled shyly, and waved. "Uh...hello. It's nice to meet you." she said. Tifa smiled. "Nice to meet you as well. I'm Tifa, and this is my fiancee, Cloud. He's a vampire, while I'm a Dark Angel."

Kairi's eyes widened. "So...where are your wings?""Hidden in my shirt. I don't really need them at the moment." Tifa explained. "Anyway...Aura, can we trust Kairi not to tell anyone this?" Cloud cut in, looking at Aura.

Kairi frowned. "I'm right here, you can ask me yourself. I don't tell secrets, so you don't have to worry about me blabbing it out." she said. Aura grinned. "There's your answer Cloudy!~" she said, laughing.

Cloud rolled his eyes. "Alright...anyway, Vincent here was telling Tifa and I about a group of vampires the Council recently arrested. Some of their members are from here." he said, crossing his arms.

"They were breaking an old law-to never drink a human's blood." Tifa added gravely, which made Aura gasp. "Wait, seriously?! Why the heck would they do that?!"

"It can be quite addicting, Aura-like a drug. Right now, they're holding their trials in the Council's headquarters. We may or may not be seeing them again, depending on their decision." Cloud said, before he closed his eyes and sighed.

"One of them was my younger brother, Roxas. I knew he had a group, and would often go out into the mortal world...but not that he did this. I should've seen the signs..." he trailed off, guilt in his eyes.

Tifa tried to comfort him. "Cloud, it's not your fault. No one had any idea this was going on until now." she said.

"No! I'm his older brother-the only family he has left. We need to look out for each other...I failed him, Tifa. I did." Cloud replied, looking down.

Kairi blinked. "Wait...his name is Roxas?" she asked, remembering the blond haired boy at the club. "I think I met him once. He seemed very nice." she said. _Of course, nice doesn't always mean good. _she added in her head.

Cloud looked at her. "...he is." he said, before sighing. "I can only hope he'll get a light punishment. Then maybe I can be a better brother..." Tifa sighed before taking Cloud away.

Aura looked sad. "Man...I've seen Roxas a few times before. He's a pretty nice guy. It's a shame he resorted to something like this. Poor Cloud...poor Roxas..."

Then, as quick as the wind, she looked up at Kairi, grinning. "ALRIGHT! Now's not the time to be sad! I still need to show you around! Come on Kairi, I'll show you the best places to get supplies for pranks!" she declared before dragging Kairi off again.

* * *

Aqua was in her home, drinking some tea as she waited for Aura to return with Kairi. She smiled softly-she had grown to care for the mischievous girl as a daughter. It was a shame that her true mother had died during the Great Battle.

_Oh Freya...if you could see her now... _

"Aqua! We're home!" Her eyes shifted to the door, where Aura and Kairi were entering. They each had a couple of bags. Aqua smiled.

"Good. You're just in time for dinner." she said, as she walked to the kitchen. "Do you want to join us Aura? If so, do invite your father." she said.

Aura shook her head. "Nah, it's fine. Dad's ordering takeout, and I am NOT missing my chance to order something chocolate." She rushed toward the door, before turning to face Kairi. She smiled.

"I had a lot of fun today. Wanna meet tomorrow too?" she asked, hope filling her eyes. Kairi smiled. "Of course! I can't wait until then. Thank you Aura, for showing me around!" she said.

Aura grinned. "No problem! See ya tomorrow!" she called out before leaving.

Kairi smiled before she sat down at the dining room table. "Hey Aqua? Is it true there aren't many witches or warlocks around Aura's or my age?" she questioned.

Aqua sighed as she brought in the food. "Sadly yes. Many of the witches and warlocks were either killed or had left this town to find safety. It was dark times Kairi-with luck though we'll never have to experience it again." she said.

Kairi nodded. This 'dark times' thing must've been really bad. She hoped she'd learn more about it very soon. She looked out the windows at the setting sun.

For some reason, she felt like something big had just begun.

* * *

**DUN DUN DAH! XD I wanted to say that. Alright, thus ends Kairi's first day in Dissidia! She met a lot of new people-like Aura! Aura, in case no one knows, is my OC. I'd love advice about her interactions with everyone, cause I REALLY don't want her to be a Mary Sue. So, if she sounds Mary Sueish, tell me please, because I will do my best to try and fix things. **

**She's gonna be a guide of sorts to Kairi in this new world she doesn't know about but Aura does. So expect to see her a lot. **

**SO! What are these 'dark times' and the Great Battle? What just started? And where does Roxas fall into this?...some of these questions MAY be answered in le NEXT CHAPTER!**

**Please leave a review, advice is appreciated, flames will be fed to Natsu. (Points if you know who I'm talking about. XD)**


	5. The Fateful Rendezvous

**Hello everybodys!~ Looks like Aura had been received well, and for that I'm glad. I was stressing so much over her...XD**

**Reviews:**

_**CirciFox81314-**_** YAY! YOU GET BROWNIES! XD I love that anime. And yep! AURA'S HERE!...everyone run for your lives. XD Man, Cloud's in a bad situation...I guess you'll find out what happens now!**

_**dario. flaman- **_**Yep, that's the problem I find with stories as well...The struggle is real. T_T I assure you, we find out on what is Roxie's fate this chapter, and hopefully, Cloud will be ok! XD Heh, Zelda reference...yep! Best. Town Name. Ever. XD Hope this doesn't disappoint ya!**

_**cutenessfan19-**_** Man, it seems like everyone hates Twilight...don't worry, there will be no sparkling vampires in this story. XD And if there is...**

**Well, then someone is IMPERSONATING ME! *dramatic music***

**InnocentSerenade- Ah, but who says he and his lackeys only targeted Kairi and Xion? Maybe they targeted other girls before them. Maybe one or two after. Those times, they may have succeeded in drinking their blood. However, they must've slipped up after Xion and Kairi to finally get caught. No one knows that Kairi was one of those attacked-and frankly, would YOU try and defend your almost-killer? I JUST DIDN'T WANT AURA TO BE ATTACKED FOR BEING A MARY SUE! Seriously, people can be quite mean about that. Yeah, yeah, Xion will appear soon, just be patient. Hey...the male lead may appear soon too...XD And you'll have to wait and see Larxene's part...**_**  
**_

**Wow. Long reply is long.**

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**Only newbie is le ****_Muffinmilk317!_**** Mmm...muffins...*drools***

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**...no new followers...GOSH DARN IT! :P**

**SO! Last time, Kairi had her first day in Dissidia! She met many new people, including Roxas' older brother Cloud, the mischievous Aura, and the Council representative for vampires, the one and only Vincent Valentine! Time has passed since then though, and now she'll be starting school...who will she meet?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. I don't own Final Fantasy. That's all I'm going to say, and all I need to say.**

* * *

The weeks passed as Kairi grew used to living in the strange world of Dissidia. Aura would always show her around, telling her about its history...or at least, the history she knew about it.

Her 16th birthday had come and passed. She was unfortunately unable to celebrate with her mother, but she still felt content with Aqua and Aura. She grew concerned when nothing occurred on that day with her powers.

Aqua explained the Awakening did not always take place on the same day as the 16th birthday. "Sometimes, it can occur a few days or even weeks after. But it always happens after the person turns 16." she had said.

Every day brought something new. But soon enough, the time for school finally came.

Kairi looked nervously at her reflection in the mirror. She was wearing the school's uniform for girls-a dark purple blazer with a white blouse underneath along with a tan skirt that ended just above her knees.

On her feet were almost knee length black socks along with matching black shoes. On the collar of her shirt was a dark green bow that drooped down.

Kairi sighed. Her Awakening had still not occurred. She wondered if she'd need her powers. What would she do then? Not to mention, Aura was the only one she knew-and what if she got lost?

_It sucks being the new kid... _she thought depressingly.

"Kairi! Aura's here-you better go now if you don't want to be late!" Aqua shouted from downstairs. Kairi gasped before grabbing her schoolbag.

"Right, right!" She rushed down the stairs as she grabbed a slice of toast. "Thanks Aqua! Bye!" she yelled before she ran out the door and nearly crashed into Aura.

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Aura dodged in time to avoid being crashed into. "Calm down, ginger! We'll make it there, I promise." she said, grinning in amusement.

Kairi smiled sheepishly before she blinked. "Aura...what are you wearing?" she questioned. Aura smiled innocently.

"The school uniform, of course."

"Aura...that's the guys' version."

Indeed, Aura was wearing a dark purple suit along with a white undershirt. The suit was not buttoned up, her dark green tie was slightly loose, and the sleeves were rolled up slightly as well. She also wore tan pants, ending with black shoes similar to Kairi's.

Aura grinned. "What, it's still the uniform. I don't see what the problem is." She then sulked. "Reason I'm wearing this is cause I hate skirts. Or dresses. They make me feel...vulnerable. You know what I mean?" she asked, wincing slightly.

Kairi looked at her, before sighing and nodded. "Yeah...but Aura, what if they force you to wear the other uniform when we get there?" she asked, as they began walking off.

"Well then, I'll just explain that this is still a uniform and I can wear this version if I wish. Besides, it'd be discrimination-there are people out there who feel they were born in the wrong gender." Aura said, raising an eyebrow.

"But...you're not one of them."

"They don't know that!~"

Kairi sighed before she looked around. "Um, Aura? We are going to the school, right?" she asked.

Aura grinned. "I know a faster way of getting there. Just wait here-it'll come soon." she said.

"What will?" Kairi asked, slightly nervous. Aura grinned as she spotted two thin sticks flying their way.

"Why, our brooms, of course." Aura replied as the brooms rushed up to them. She grinned as she got on one.

Kairi stared. "W-we're riding these to school?" she asked.

"Oh don't worry! Think of it as riding a bike-only, you don't pedal. You use your mind to control it." Aura explained as she shifted to get a better seat.

Kairi eyed her warily. "Where did you get these? And have you ridden one before? Last I checked, neither you or I had flying brooms." she said.

"Oh, well...the brooms are my parents'. Dad doesn't use his much anymore and Mom..." Aura's voice trailed off. "...well, she doesn't need it where she is now." She then smiled big, voice sounding cheerful.

"I'm on my Dad's! You can use Mom's. Think of it as a late birthday present! And I've ridden a broom before!...once." Aura muttered the last part. Unfortunately, Kairi was able to hear it.

"AURA! What if we end up crashing into a building o-or fall to the ground o-or even-"

"KAIRI! Relax. I promise you, we'll be fine. We won't crash. We won't fall. We won't be late." Aura said, cutting off Kairi's panic rant. She smiled.

"Now, all you gotta do is sit in the broom and tell it in your head to go up. Even without your Awakening, you can still use it with the little power you already have. Saying it aloud helps though. Like this!" She then looked ahead.

"Up!" she commanded, and immediately her broom rose high into the air. She hid her nervousness as she clung on to her broom and looked down, putting on a huge grin.

"See? Easy!" she exclaimed. Kairi bit her lip as she stared at the broom.

"Aura...I'm wearing a skirt." she pointed out, stalling.

"Just sit on it like a lady would on a horse then, over the side." Aura replied, checking her watch. "We're gonna be late if we don't go soon, Kairi-it's now or never." she said.

Kairi sighed before she nodded and got onto the broom. She clung onto the broom so tightly her knuckles were turning white. _I hope I don't fall. _she thought, turning pale.

Aura grinned in excitement. "Alright! Let's go!~" she cheered before she flew her broom off.

Kairi gulped. "H-hey, wait up!" she yelled, before she frantically commanded her broom to follow her.

* * *

At Fantasia Academy, a brown-haired boy was walking toward the school. He could see many of its students were milling around the front yard, waiting for school to begin.

Fantasia Academy was a very old school, having been built at the time as Dissidia began to grow in population. It had been originally a home for a rich family of angels.

However, after the Fae began to hide from humans, it had been transformed into a suitable school for all the many species of Fae that came to live in Dissidia. Now, it remains a school that still stands regal despite its age.

The boy looked up at the Academy's exterior-it was large, with 4 large towers topped with purple caps and built with tan bricks, inspiring the uniform colors.

The middle part was stout compared to the towers which contained a couple classes each, but it was large enough the house the rest of the classes, along with a cafeteria, auditorium, gym, and many hallways.

He knew behind the castle was a larger yard that bordered the forest, where students were forbidden to go.

The boy sighed. Part of him still wished to stay at his home and sleep in. However, he needed to come-it was the law very strictly upheld by the Council.

_It'll probably another boring year... _Sora thought, his wolf ears twitching in annoyance and despair.

"YAHOOO!"

"Oh NO!"

Two girls suddenly flew in from the sky, both on a broom. The first one had a wild, excited grin on her face, while the other was clinging onto her broom for dear life.

They each crash landed onto the ground, with the first girl actually jumping off her broom and rolling onto the ground, laughing. The other continued flying lower and lower, until she crashed into a tree and landed on a bush..

Sora watched in shock and surprise as they each got up, brushing off dirt and leaves. The first girl laughed.

"Oh man, that was AWESOME!" she said. He noticed she was wearing the guys' school uniform.

The other girl sighed, wearing the regular uniform for girls. "I don't think I'll be riding the broom for awhile." she said.

The first girl pouted. "Aw...ok, fine, You can take the bus home then." she said.

The second girl looked up, eyes wide. "Wait...there was a bus?" she asked in shock. The first one-Sora decided to name her the ravenette due to her black hair-grinned.

"Yeah, there's always a bus that comes to our neighborhood." she replied casually.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME ABOUT THIS?!" the second girl shouted, slightly fuming.

"It would've been too boring a way to come to school! It's our first day, it should be special!" Ravenette proclaimed.

The other girl sighed. "I guess...but, it would've been nice if you remembered how to land brooms properly." she said, exasperated.

Ravenette laughed sheepishly. "Yeah, I guess that WOULD'VE been nice...Oh! Looks like we've attracted attention." she commented as she looked around at several staring students. She waved, grinning.

The other girl looked embarrassed. She muttered something under her breath before the bell suddenly rang. Quickly, she rushed to get inside, followed by a laughing Ravenette.

Sora raised an eyebrow at the two. As he went inside, he wondered if he'd get the chance to know them.

With them present, it looked like the year may not be so boring after all.

* * *

Kairi sighed as she hiked up the steps in the northeast tower. She was heading to her next class, which was Fae History.

Her schedule consisted of an eight period rotation, almost each lasting 45 minutes. (The exception was the 5th period, their Free Time, that only lasted 30 minutes. This was when they could eat lunch and have recess.)

So far, she had Art (which wasn't that bad), Math (she thought Aura was going to pass out from confusion there), and then Gym (ah, all the dodgeballs she barely managed to dodge...).

Now it was 4th period. Unfortunately, Aura wasn't in this class, so she was on her own. She hoped she wouldn't have too much trouble.

She finally reached the top and began to walk toward the door. She took a deep breath.

_Here I go... _she thought, before she entered the classroom.

* * *

Sora was sitting in his seat, bored out of his mind and ready to fall asleep on his desk as he waited for class to start. Just then, the door opened and his eyes flickered over to the newcomer.

He blinked when he realized it was the girl from before, the second one. She was looking around nervously. Other than himself and her, there were a few fairies clustered in the corner, and some other students ranging from werewolves, merfolk and-he growled mentally-vampires.

The girl walked through the desks, looking for an empty seat. She soon picked the one in front of him, putting down her schoolbag.

She looked through it, appearing to search for something. "Oh, where is my pencil?..." she muttered as she searched. Sora looked down and saw the pencil near his foot. He picked it up and tapped on her shoulder.

He smiled friendly-like at her. "Uh, is this yours?" he asked, showing her the pencil. The girl sighed in relief. "Yeah, it is. Thanks!" she said as she took the pencil.

He smiled. "No problem. I'm Sora-what's your name?" he asked, curious. The girl smiled.

"My name's Kairi. It's nice to meet you, Sora." she replied amiably. "Kairi...that's a nice name." Sora commented. Kairi blushed slightly. "Thanks...Sora is a nice name too. Means 'Sky', right?" she asked, and he nodded.

She looked at him closely, before blinking. "You...have wolf ears." she said in surprise.

Sora raised an eyebrow. "Well, yeah. I am a werewolf, after all." He grinned, showing his canines. "What, you never met a werewolf before?" he questioned. Kairi nodded.

"I'm...new to Dissidia. Where I come from, there aren't many werewolves." she admitted. "Oh..." Sora blinked in surprise before he smiled happily.

"I'm glad I'm your first werewolf then!" he exclaimed. "So, what species are you? A fairy? Angel?" he asked. Kairi was about to answer when the teacher walked in.

He had long silver hair that stopped halfway down his back. His light blue eyes looked around the room as he adjusted the violet tie on his dark purple suit.

Many of the girls started whispering and giggling at his appearance. He was quite a looker. The teacher stopped in front of the class before he began to speak in an elegant way.

"Hello, my young blossoms and cubs! I am your maestro, your teacher, Kuja Lune. You may refer to me as Mr. Lune. We shall be studying our wonderous past, filled with horror! Courage! And hope!"

He got out a list. "Now then, I shall be taking roll. Miss Elizabeth DeWitt, fairy?" he asked, and the bright green eyed girl nodded cheerily. "Here!"

As he continued on, Kairi noticed how all the vampires were on one side and Sora and the other werewolves were on the other. She sweatdropped. _Looks like tensions are still high... _she thought, when she heard a delighted gasp.

"Miss Kairi? You are a witch? My, we haven't had a young witch in quite a while!" Kuja exclaimed, looking at her as heads turned to stare at her. Kairi's cheeks slightly reddened from all the attention. "Um...yes, I am." she mumbled, as a reply.

Sora blinked. A witch? _Well, it would explain the brooms_, he thought sheepishly. So then that other girl was a witch too-wow. He wondered if they were the only ones.

In Dissidia, you tended to stay near your own kind everywhere, from primary school to work to town. So meeting people of other species can be rare at times. But everyone knew there weren't many witches in town-they just didn't know who were witches.

Sora was a little different. He had friends from different species. Still, the majority still stuck with their own kind. He examined Kairi carefully. She didn't look dangerous as stories say witches are. But looks can be deceiving...

"Um, Sora? Do you want to be partners?" Kairi asked him as she turned around to face him. Sora blinked, before he made a huge smile. "Sure! Let's ace this thing!" he exclaimed, and Kairi laughed.

_Dangerous or not, she has a nice laugh... _

* * *

Kairi walked out of the class after it ended, chatting with Sora.

"You can't be serious, Sora! Why would you tell someone that?" She asked, trying hard to not laugh.

Sora pouted. "I trusted her...I didn't think she'd go ahead and try to tickle me in that very spot! So many people were staring..." he muttered, causing Kairi to finally laugh.

"Hey!" he said in mock annoyance, causing Kairi to quiet her laughter to giggles. "I'm sorry Sora, but...most people will do that if you tell them the spot where you're most ticklish. Especially if it's your mom." she noted.

Sora sighed before smiling. "True...guess I was asking for it. Hey, do you wanna sit my friends at lunch?" he asked her. Kairi frowned.

"Well, I'd first have to find Aura and ask her-"

"FREEEEDOOOOOM!"

They turned and saw Aura running out of a classroom. She was panting as if she had been suffocating in there. She looked up and grinned when she saw Sora and Kairi.

"Kairi! Sora! Hey there!" She walked up to them.

The two blinked. "You know him/me?" they both asked at the same time. Aura grinned.

"Of course I do! I know everyone in this town, even if they don't know me. Plus, it helps that one of Sora's friends is one of mine." she added. "Does the name Riku sound familiar?" she asked him.

Sora blinked. "Yeah! I didn't know you knew him." he said in surprise. "We're best buddies! Hopefully now we'll also be best buddies-he's told me a lot about you." Aura commented.

Sora smiled. "I hope so too."

Kairi, feeling left out, decided to speak up. "So, who or what were you running from, Aura?" she questioned.

"Literature. The first day is ALWAYS boring, no matter which school you're in!" Aura whined.

Sora laughed. "I've been like that with all my classes all day. Wish I could still be sleeping..." he mumbled.

"Well at least it's lunch time now. Hey Aura, do you want to sit with Sora and his friends? He invited us to do that, but I wanted to know what you thought." Kairi said.

Aura grinned. "I'd LOVE to!" she replied. Kairi smiled. "I would too."

Sora smiled. "Alright then. Come on, we're missing all the food!" he shouted before he ran off, causing the other two to follow him as fast as they could.

When they reached the cafeteria. Kairi stopped and looked around in awe. It was very large, with banners on the walls that had the school colors and a strange symbol on it.

All around there were tables where many students sat. Most were mainly of one species, but there were a few that had different species at the same table.

"Come on Kairi!" she heard Aura shout, and she frantically followed her grinning friend.

They then reached a table where Sora was talking to its inhabitants.

"...so, I thought maybe we'd let them sit here. They're really nice!" he said, before he noticed them walk up. He smiled.

"Everyone, meet Aura and Kairi! Aura, Kairi, these are my friends: Riku, Ventus, Neku, and Shiki." Sora introduced, gesturing to each member.

Riku was a pale boy who looked slightly older than them, with short silver hair and aquamarine eyes. He had bat-like wings coming out from his back. He smiled slightly. "Nice to meet you." he said.

Ventus was a blond haired boy who looked disturbingly like Roxas. The only difference was that his eyes showed much more warmth and kindness. He smiled at them, showing his fangs. "Hi.' he said politely.

Neku was an orange haired boy, who was listening to his purple headphones. He didn't seem that interested, as he just glanced at them, his wolf ears twitching, before muttering out a "Hello".

Shiki was the opposite, beaming at them happily. She had dark red hair that was medium length and hidden under a brown cap, along with red-brown eyes. "Hi, it's nice to meet you!" she chirped, her transparent wings fluttering behind her.

Aura grinned. "Hello! Nice to meet you all, too, though Riku and I have met before. Right Riku?" she asked as she sat down beside him. He rolled his eyes.

"Of course Aura, how could I forget you?" he asked rhetorically. Kairi chuckled and sat down along with Sora. "It's nice to meet you all as well." she said.

"So, is it true? You both are witches?" Shiki asked excitedly. Kairi smiled. "Yep. Are you a fairy?" she asked, which Shiki nodded. "Yep! Riku here is a demon-a very nice one though, Ven is a vampire, and Neku is a werewolf like Sora!" she exclaimed.

Aura frowned, confused. "Wait, I thought werewolves and vampires hated each other?" she asked. "Not all of us do. Some of us can manage to be friends with one another. Still, I believe Ven's the only vampire I can stand. The rest are just...ugh." Sora said, grimacing.

Ven sighed. "Yeah...I say the same for both Sora and Neku. No offense." he added as he looked at Sora. Riku frowned. "Is something the matter Ven? You're not your usual self." he said.

"Well...it's about my twin brother." Ven said. Neku grimaced. "Roxas? What about him?" he asked. "Well, he had his trial yesterday. I don't know what his punishment was. If he was exiled...well, he may have done some wrong things, but he's still my brother. I would've liked to say goodbye." Ven looked down sadly.

"We used to be the best of friends...but then he started drifting away from me. Now, I guess that must've been when he started...well, drinking human blood. I feel like I should've known..."

Aura sighed. "You're not the only one. Cloud is still beating himself up about it, right?" she asked, and Ven nodded. He frowned. "How did you-"

"I saw him in town when he received the news. He looked devastated." she commented. Ven sighed.

Kairi looked at him sadly. She wondered if it was her fault Roxas had been caught.

_The actions of one person can end up affecting many...sad thing is, they may not even realize it. So they end up hurting those who care for them. _she thought.

Ven looked up, before gasping suddenly. Sora immediately got up, along with Riku. "Oh my gosh..." Ven whispered, pale. "How is he here?" Sora asked in shock. "I don't know, but he doesn't look happy." Riku noted.

Aura's eyes widened. "Oh. SHIP." she said, close to swearing. Neku narrowed his eyes. Shiki bit her lip nervously. Kairi turned around slowly, before gasping as her eyes met his.

"R-Roxas?"

* * *

**DUN DUN DAH! XD I love leaving cliffhangers. Yep! ROXAS IS HERE! Why though? And why is he coming to Sora and the gang? We'll find out next chapter it looks! And Sora finally appears! He'll play an important role in the story later on, you'll see. XD I assure you all, Ven is the final vampire I will reveal relating to Roxas. Just saying...**

**Neku and Shiki are here as well! Tell me how I did with them, in case I need to make an improvement on their personalities. And KUJA!...I just thought he'd make a good teacher. XD Um, same with him please. I never played FF9.**

**So! Please leave a review, advice is appreciated, and flames will be put out with Demyx's water!**


	6. The Return

**HAI! How ya'll like my cliffhanger? XD Don't worry, everything will come to light in this chapter.**

**OR WILL IT?!**

**_CirciFox81314_- WOO! Neku and Shiki! Yeah, I wanted to include them in here. AND HUZZAH! SORA HAS APPEARED! You're welcome. :D Thanks for being so patient. It looks like I'm so awesome at cliffhangers I made you speechless! XD And as for Joshua...XD**

**_Lilac Clouds_- THANKS! I'll do my very best! :D That's a very pretty name.**

**_dario. flaman_- XD I always imagined Sora to be a werewolf because of his spiky hair. THE BROOMS ARE NOT MEANT FOR THE WEAK HEARTED! But for daredevils like Aura, they're perfect. XD Sora, well...I guess he took the bus. Or RAN TO SCHOOL AS A WOLF! It's up to you. XD The canary thing...who knows, maybe Kuja WILL say it...AND NOW WE FIND OUT WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN TO KAIRI!  
**

**_Muffinmilk317_- Aura can be hilarious when she's very dramatic. XD Or when she's mischievous. **

**Favs: **

**We now add _Skylar Windsong_ and _Random Reader 17_! Thank you for liking my story! :D I like the wind. And songs. And reading too. Just putting that out there...XD**

**Follows: **

**_Skylar Windsong_ yet again and _lordibau_! YEAH! WELCOME TO THE CLUB! :D**

**SO! Last time, Kairi had her first day at Fantasia Academy-technically, she still is. She has met many new friends, including Sora the werewolf. HOWEVER! It seems an old foe has returned...by the name of ROXAS! Now we shall witness the encounter and its consequences...**

**Disclaimer: Why do we laugh? Why do we cry? Why do people assume I own Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy or even The World Ends with You even though I don't?...the answer? I DON'T KNOW. **

* * *

Roxas stood there, staring at the group. He wore the school uniform, albeit with an undone tie, open suit revealing his black undershirt, and rolled up sleeves. He suddenly chuckled.

"What, can't I say hello to my twin brother?" he asked, fangs appearing dangerously as he smiled. Kairi hid behind Aura, hoping he hadn't seen her. Ven's voice trembled as he spoke.

"I...I don't understand. Why are you here? I thought, with what you had done, you'd be-"

"Exiled?" Roxas laughed, before crossing his arms. "Oh they considered doing that to me, like they had done with my comrades. Only they ended up cutting my powers to half and instead sending me here, due to my young age." He shrugged.

"I guess they thought this school would help...'fix' me." he said, putting up quote marks on 'fix'. "So far, it's been boring, not able to mess with people. Then I saw you and your lackeys, and I figured, 'Why not visit the brother and his friends who abandoned me when I needed them most?'" His eyes narrowed as he scowled.

Riku's voice was calm, yet firm. "You brought this upon yourself, Roxas. If you had a problem, you should've spoke to your brothers about it, not keep silent and hang around the wrong people."

Roxas scowled. "Oh please, it's not like I tried. But everytime, both of them would either push me away or tell me I had to solve it myself. So I did-and for once, I was actually happy! I was with people who understood me, and I felt so filled with power." He spoke of this in a dreamy voice, making Kairi shiver.

"Well, you should've tried harder! I mean, HONESTLY! At first you don't succeed, try try again, anyone? If you couldn't tell your brothers, tell a teacher, stranger, SOMEONE!" Aura said, annoyed.

Sora nodded. "Yeah-and, it was a pretty bad idea to go and break one of the most ancient laws regardless. No matter how bad your life was, it's a bad idea to break it. I'm surprised they let you off this easy." he commented.

Roxas growled. "Enough! I'm here to settle a score with my brother-he had left me when I needed him. That had hurt...and so I'll hurt him!" He ran forward about to tackle down Ventus.

However, a sudden orange streak rushed past them and he was pinned to the ground by Neku. Neku scowled.

"I have never liked you, Roxas. That's not the case with your brother. So unless you fight him in a fair fight, I will not hesitate to protect him from you or rip you to shreds." He said quietly yet firmly, glaring him down.

Roxas scowled, before he nodded and Neku got off him. Roxas glared at Ven with angry blue eyes. "Meet me at 8 o'clock in the afternoon tonight, under the Tree of Hope in Kingdom Park. DON'T be late." And with that, he stalked off.

Shiki was shaking. "Oh my gosh...oh my gosh..." she kept muttering, looking pale. Neku walked over to her and started to calm her down. Aura looked furious.

"WHAT THE HELL?! What's his problem?! This is SO stupid-if he's pissed off, then he has only himself to blame!" she yelled. "Aura, calm down. It's too late for that. Roxas has challenged Ventus-and I don't think he'll go easy on him." Riku said.

Ven gulped, before nodding. "Y-yeah. He's an amazing fighter. He can dual wield too. I'm not sure if I can beat him..." he mumbled. Kairi frowned. "Wait-just what happens in a duel? Are there rules, or what?" she asked.

Sora looked at her before answering. "Well, when you have a duel, the two people involved have to fight until one can't fight anymore. That person will usually shout 'Tradidero!' to show he was done. It's better than having fight to the death like they used to." he said, shuddering.

"T-to the death?" Kairi asked, paling. Riku turned to Ven. "Ven, you gotta beat him. I'll be your second if you want." he offered. Ven shook his head.

"No...this is between Roxas and me. I don't want to bring anyone into this. Hopefully I can defeat him without hurting him too much." he said softly.

Sora frowned. "We're your friends Ven-let us at least come with you in case something...bad happens and we'd need Shiki's healing magic." he said, while Shiki nodded.

"We'll come too!" Aura declared, looking at Kairi. "We may have just met, sure-but we'll be there to support ya too!" she said, grinning.

Kairi smiled and nodded. "Of course!" she said, but in her mind she was wondering if she should. Roxas might recognize her...but it'd be dark. Maybe he wouldn't be able to see her very well.

Ven blinked, before he smiled. "Alright. Thanks guys."

* * *

Neku glanced boredly at the cloudy night sky. It was almost time for Ven's match with Roxas. He was outside Shiki's fairy-only neighborhood, waiting for the girl.

She had been frantic at the time they'd left school. She probably was packing all the healing potions and runes she thought she'd need for healing Ven. Which, knowing Shiki, would be a lot.

He sighed. He hoped they'd be able to get there in time. Even if he didn't act like it, he still cared for his friends' safety. _That might be because of Shiki's influence._ he thought bemusedly.

"Neku! Neku! I'm ready!" He turned and saw the socialite girl fly out toward him, bag full of healing supplies. She was wearing her regular clothing-her brown cap, a red and black shirt, white vest, green shorts, and of course her brown and yellow striped boots.

She landed beside him and frowned. She put down her bag before suddenly fixing his scarf. "You look like a mess..." she commented as she looked at his rumpled purple and black sleeveless shirt, wrinkled white shorts, and scuffed purple shoes. He scowled.

"It's fine. We have more important matters to attend to." he commented, before he got ready to run. "Ready to go?" he asked.

Shiki nodded, before she picked up her bag and flew off, Neku following close behind in wolf form.

* * *

"Ok, so here's the plan. If anything bad happens, you hold him down while I grab a knife-"

"For the last time Aura, we're not interfering."

"But-"

"It's his fight Aura-let him fight it."

"WHAT IF HE ENDS UP NEEDING HELP?!"

"We can't kill Roxas, Aura."

Aura glared at Riku, who stared coolly back. "Aura...I know you're worried. But we'll only make things worse if we try to help. We can stop Roxas if he goes too far-but until then, we can only watch." he said.

Aura continued glaring before she sighed and looked away. "I hate just watching...just doing nothing. Makes me feel useless." she muttered. Riku raised an eyebrow.

"That's funny, considering you just met Ven." he commented. She looked at him.

"Well yeah, but he's entering a duel. A DUEL! And duels NEVER end well! I'm freaked out it's gonna end badly and people are gonna cry! Not only for Ven, but for Roxas too." Aura stated, a sad look on her face.

"I thought you hated him?"

"Hate's a strong word-more like extremely wary. But Cloud and Ven care for Roxas-so to lose him, or Ven himself...well, Cloud's going to be affected either way, and each twin will feel the sting of guilt."

"That's very uncharacteristic of you-being all philosophical."

"When you have no friends for the first few years of your life, you tend to start thinking deeply about stuff. I still do that even today."

Riku looked at her sympathetically. He had first met Aura when she was 10 and he was 11. Before that, she had no friends. All the other witches near her age lived too far away or didn't want to interact with her.

That was just harsh. He wondered how she managed to stay cheery despite that.

Meanwhile, Aura was chatting away about one of her pranks, when she stopped and grabbed his arm. "Riku look! It's Neku and Shiki."

Riku looked up to see the werewolf and fairy run/fly up to them. Shiki was holding a bag full of healing potions, while Neku just looked his usual self once he ran up: bored and disinterested.

"Hello Riku. Hello Aura. You on your way?" he asked. Riku nodded. "We're just waiting for Sora and Kairi. They should be here soon." he commented.

"Oh, I hope so. If they don't, we'll end up missing the duel!" Shiki fretted. Aura frowned. "You know, Kairi was acting weird the way home. I think she's hiding something-what though, I have no idea."

"What makes you think that?" Riku asked. Aura hesitated.

"Well...she was real jittery. She kept tapping her foot, glancing around with her eyes, biting her lip. When I asked her about it, she practically jumped a mile into the air. Afterwards, she denied it. But there was a look in her eyes that told me she was lying. She's hiding something alright-just don't know what." she explained.

Shiki frowned. "That's strange...when did it start?" she asked. "After we met Roxas at lunch, now that I think of it." Aura answered.

Neku crossed his arms. "It looks like Roxas and Kairi may have a connection. We'll confront her about it after the duel-right now is not the time." he said, and everyone nodded silently in agreement.

_I just hope it's not anything bad... _Aura thought in her head, silently worried.

* * *

Kairi bit her lip as she stared at herself in the mirror. She was aware of the night sky outside, but didn't attempt to stand from her bed.

She had been nervous ever since Roxas had reappeared. She was glad he hadn't seemed to recognize her then-but now might be a different case.

She had talked to Aqua about it and she had found out something that was currently making her more worried than ever.

Aqua had bit her lip. "Vampires can see very well in the dark, Kairi. You're going to have to be careful." Aqua had warned. "I can only hope Ven will be alright as well..."

She was now debating on whether to go or not. She knew she was running out of time-but what should she do? Stay safe at home and hope Ven would be ok while breaking a promise? Or go to the duel and risk getting recognized by the boy who nearly drained her blood?

There was a knock by the door. "Come on." Kairi said, not taking her eyes off the mirror.

Aqua walked in, holding an old looking book. She sat by Kairi, and looked at her through the mirror.

"...penny for your thoughts?" she asked. Kairi sighed.

"Aqua...I don't know what to do. I want to go with the others to support Ven, but...I don't know what will happen if Roxas recognizes me. What if he tries to attack me-or worse, ends up hurting Ven MORE because of me? But I don't want to let them down."

Aqua considered Kairi's words for a moment. "That does sound a bit conflicting. Kairi-look inside yourself. What do you want to do?" she asked.

"...go with the others. But-" Aqua cut Kairi off.

"There you go. Kairi, there will be times when the thing you want to do has a chance of being dangerous. It's up to you to choose whether to choose that or not. Life always has its dangers-it's impossible to try and stay safe from it all. Sometimes, you'll just have to take the chance."

She then placed the old book in Kairi's hands. It was magenta, and looked very worn. "Take this with you. It's an old tome of mine that I rarely use now-you can probably still use it whenever you get the chance. It has the spell Spark."

Kairi frowned. "Spark?" she asked.

"It's a spell that summons a ring of light crystals. Very handy when needing to knock away and foes. Right now if you used, it'd be at half power. It'll be at full power though after you've had your Awakening." Aqua explained.

Kairi fingered the edge of the tome before looking up at Aqua. "Aqua...just HOW does it happen? Maybe I can trigger it somehow-" she stopped as Aqua put up one hand.

"I can't tell you that. It's something you have to figure out on your own. But I can tell you this-you were on the right track Kairi, back when you first showed signs of having powers." She said.

Kairi sighed. "A riddle. Of course." She smiled. "Oh well. Thanks Aqua-I know what I'm going to do now." she said.

Aqua smiled. "No problem Kairi."

Suddenly the doorbell rang. Aqua got up to go and answer it. Kairi examined the Spark tome and opened it up. In it she saw a strange language written in it. She could barely read it.

_How am I supposed to use this?... _She thought, slightly bewildered. "Um, Aqua..." she started to say, before she heard Aqua call out.

"Kairi, a friend of yours is here!"

Kairi frowned before she came downstairs, the tome in her hands. When she reached the front door, she saw that Aqua was standing with a familiar brown spiky haired boy.

"Sora! I didn't expect to see you!...how do you know where I live?" Kairi asked suspiciously.

He laughed nervously. "Relax, Kairi. Aura told me you lived here. Anyway, I came by because..well, it's almost time. And I figured if you wanted to come, you'd need someone to show you where it was." he said.

"Oh...well that's fine. I am going-thanks Sora." Kairi replied, smiling slightly. He nodded with a big smile. "No problem!~" he chirped.

Aqua raised an eyebrow as she looked between the two, but she kept silent. Kairi noticed and decided that they needed to leave at that moment before Aqua assumed something obviously not true.

"Uh, can we go now, Sora? If that's alright with you." she quickly asked. Sora blinked. "No, it's fine...are you sure?" he asked. "Oh yeah, I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Let's go!"

And with that, she grabbed his arm and dragged him off as she shouted a farewell at Aqua. Aqua blinked, before she chuckled. "Well...that was quick..." she commented.

* * *

"Slow down Kairi! We'll still make it on time if we just walk!" Sora shouted before he pulled his arm from Kairi's grip. _Man, she has a tight grip... _he remarked in his thoughts as he rubbed his wrist.

Kairi looked guilty. "Sora, I'm sorry. I'm just worried about Ven." she said. Sora's face turned serious.

"All of us are, Kairi. All of us." He brightened up as he spotted the others. "There they are! Come on!" he rushed over, and Kairi had to run to catch up.

"ABOUT TIME! Where have you been?!" Shiki demanded as they ran up. "I'm sorry, I got lost! I ended up having to use my nose to try and find Kairi's house. You smell like cherry blossoms, by the way." Sora commented to Kairi.

She blinked. "Oh...thanks?" she said, unsure. "Ignore him. Anyway, now that we're all here, we can go to Ven's duel. Let's hope they haven't started already." Neku said. Sora frowned, confused.

"Wait, I thought it was starting at 8 o'clock, right?"

"Right."

"So we still have time."

"Uh...no we don't, Sora. It's 7:50."

"What? But my watch says 7:00..."

"...Sora?"

"Yeah?"

"Your watch is 50 minutes too slow."

"...oh. So...oh. Heh..." Sora smiled sheepishly as everyone else glared at him, annoyed.

Neku sighed. "Looks like we'll have to run there-or fly." He added, as he looked at Riku and Shiki. Aura grinned.

"Don't worry, Kairi and I have our brooms-"

"Oh no. NO. I'm not riding that ever again."

"Aw come on, Kairi. Don't worry, I looked up how to land them. You just thrust out your legs so they're diagonal to the ground, and dip your broom down SLIGHTLY. That'll make it slowly get closer to the ground before you use your legs to land safely!"

"..." Kairi sighed. "Fine..."

"Yay!~ Alright, let's go!" Aura shouted before she grinned and snapped her fingers. The brooms came flying toward them before hovering by their sides.

Shiki flapped her wings. "Alright-ready Riku?" she asked, and Riku nodded. He flapped his own wings. Aura and Kairi quickly got on their brooms. Sora pouted.

"I wish I could fly..." he muttered. Neku rolled his eyes. "Too bad. Let's go." And with that, they ran off, leaving behind only dust.

Kairi blinked. "They didn't turn to wolves." she commented. "Well, no-they're still pretty fast in human form, so I guess they didn't want to turn to wolves." Aura replied. She grinned.

"Race ya!" she shouted before she flew up into the air. Riku narrowed his eyes with a slight smile. "Let's see you try to win." he said as he followed her. "Loser buys everyone food from Tinkerbell's!" Shiki exclaimed, doing the same.

Kairi gasped. "Hey, wait up!" she shouted as she followed. _I hope it's not too expensive... _She thought as she struggled to catch up.

* * *

Ven crashed to the ground. In his hand was his keyblade Wayward Wind. As he struggled to open his eyes, he could see his twin staring down at him, smirking.

"Come on, Ven. We've barely started the duel, and you're already on the ground?" Roxas asked, looking amused. Ven growled. "That's because you got one of your 'buddies' to slash at me with a knife that had been dipped in holy water beforehand!"

Roxas tilted his head, as if surprised. "Really? So that explains your sudden lack of strength...but what makes you think I had anything to do with it?" He chuckled.

"Oh well-there's nothing we can do about it now. The duel has started-and until you surrender, you'll have to fight with a disadvantage in your veins."

Ven glared at him before he jumped up, knocking Roxas away from him. He managed to stand straight, his Keyblade held in his usual backwards grip. He hissed out, "I will NEVER give up!"

Roxas looked startled, before he narrowed his eyes. "So be it, little brother-because I won't go down so easily either!" he shouted, before charging toward Ven with his two Keyblades in hand.

* * *

**HOLY GUACAMOLE! Roxas cheated! Now Ven's weak-hopefully the others will get there soon! But what if they can't do anything?! Hmm...we'll have to wait and see what they'll do in the next chapter! I just hope everything goes well...**

**Man, the suspense is killing me...and I'M the one writing the story!**

**Please leave a review, advice is appreciated, and flames WILL GO DOWN! TO THE GROUND! WITH NO SOUND! ALL AROUND!...just go with it. XD**


	7. The Duel

**Hello everybody! I HAVE RETURNED! We're about to find out what's gonna happen! I'm so excited. XD**

_**InnocentSerenade-**_** DUN DUN DAH! XD Aw, don't feel dumb. It's a good guess-but that's not what happens. XD Read on and find out what DOES happen! **

**_cutenessfan19-_**** DUN DUN DAH! Who knew Roxas could go that low? *grins* And you know, Kairi's Awakening may happen VERY soon...**

**_CirciFox81314_****- Roxas had Ven stabbed with a knife dipped in holy water. What did you expect him to do? And thanks! :D I'm glad I did well with Neku! And the Joshua comment...well, I do have a special role planned out for him. I meant to say all that with this: XD **

**That's never a good sign.**

**_dario. flaman-_**** *laughs nervously* That luck may change...EVERYBODY RUN/FLY FOR YOUR LIVES! XD Heh, Tinkerbell's was something I came up with in the spot. I'll enjoy describing it...Sora just comes off as that-a guy who will relent to feminine force. XD MWAHAHAH! I enjoy torturing you all with CLIFFIES!...XD At least you'll know what happens. As for Ven's fate...**

**YOU GOTTA READ TO FIND OUT!**

**_Skylar Windsong-_**** Aw, thanks! You're making me blush. :3 Roxas surprised us all when he pulled that trick. DUN DUN DAH! XD That's what happens when you drink human blood...IT CHANGES YOU! Thanks again-I try my best when writing the characters. XD**

**Aura: *gasps* You wanna be my friend?! :D YAY! **

**Yes. SUSPENSE WILL KEEL YOU!...unless you read on. *chuckles* Good luck with that bet. **

**Aura: I BET KAIRI'S GONNA HELP SOMEHOW! :D**

**No, you won't bet. It's not fair since you already know what will happen.**

**Aura: Aw...D:**

_**Logan**_**_-fireoffall_- Hey dude! Been a while since I last saw you. The brooms? Uh, no, not really. Quidditch has no influence here-I got the idea from the popular belief that witches ride on brooms.**

**Aura: But Harry Potter MIGHT have influence!...we just don't know how. But the brooms? Nah. And HAI LOGAN! :D**

**Meh, too lazy to read. XD...for now.**

**Favs: **

**We welcome ****_Logan-fireofall_**** and ****_tsukuneXmoka_****!...aw thanks, old buddy!...AND THAT'S A COOL SOUNDING NAME TSUKUNE! Sounds like a ninja. XD**

**Follows: **

**...the same two people as before! YOU BOTH FAVED AND FOLLOWED MY STORY?! :D I'm gonna cry right now! :'D**

**SO! Last time, Kairi and the others were on their way to Ven's duel with his twin, Roxas! Unfortunately, it's already started-and Ven is at a disadvantage courtesy of Roxas, with him (Ven I mean) have been stabbed with a knife dipped in holy water. Will Ven still be able to win? Will they reach him in time? Find out in this new chapter of WITCH'S DESTINY!**

**...I so did not rip off Total Drama Island. XD**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. I don't own Final Fantasy. Or TWEWY. Or a PS4. Or a million dollars. Or a bunch of other things, really.**

**Aura: She owns me, though! :D**

**WARNING: A scene in here may be a bit graphic, so, be cautious. Uh...it just ain't pretty.**

* * *

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"How about now?"

"NO."

"...now?-"

"SORA, FOR THE LAST TIME, NO!"

Neku glared at his friend, who held up his hands in surrender. "Ok, ok! I'm sorry!" Sora quickly said, not wanting to anger the orange head more.

"..." Neku let out a sigh. "It's fine, Sora. You DO see the huge tree getting closer, right?" he asked.

"Uh, sorta. Kinda hard to see in the dark on a cloudy night-OH NO!" Sora gasped, eyes wide. His eyes had spotted something under the tree.

Neku immediately turned to face him. "What's wrong?" he asked, voice sounding wary. Sora looked at him, pale.

"N-neku...I think the duel's already started." He said. "And it looks like Ven is losing."

* * *

"AHHHH! AURA DON'T DO THAT!"

"Aw shoot, I'm sorry Kairi. I swear I didn't mean to almost crash into you!"

"Be glad you didn't. I would've become a splat on the ground!"

"So you know...that was Shiki's fault."

"WHAT?! How dare you!"

"You were the one that flew too close to me! I had to move, and so I almost crashed into Kairi!"

"Well you must be mistaken, because I NEVER did that! It must've been Riku who did that!"

"First, don't include me into this. Second...we're almost there."

Riku looked calmly at the other girls. "You all ready?" he asked.

Aura nodded, smiling in determination. "I'm more ready than ever!"

Shiki nodded as well. "Yep. I just hope it doesn't get too bad..." she said, biting her lip.

Kairi was the last to nod. "Well, I'm as ready as I'll ever be, I guess. So, when we land, where do we stand-" She blinked, stopping her own sentence.

Aura noticed. "Something wrong Kairi?" she asked. Kairi started to pale, as she looked down. "Guys...please tell me I'm wrong when I say I can see the duel already starting...and not going well...and now Sora and Neku are running toward Ven and Roxas, about to do who knows what?!"

Riku looked down, and immediately cursed under his breath. He looked at Aura. "Aura, you and I are going to fly down and try and stop the werewolves. Shiki, stay here with Kairi." he ordered before he dived down.

Aura was quick to follow. "Don't worry, everything's gonna be ok!" And though she said that in a confident-sounding voice, Kairi thought she spotted a hint of worry in her eyes.

Shiki wasn't much help. She fluttered nervously in place, worried out of her mind. "Oh...Neku and Sora must have a good reason to try and stop the duel...something must have gone wrong. Very wrong. Like black socks with sandals wrong!" she cried out.

Kairi tried to calm her down. "I'm sure nothing's wrong Shiki. Neku and Sora probably just wanted to hurry to see the duel, and Riku and Aura will fly up to tell us that so we can fly down and-"

Then Kairi heard a loud scream of pain. That then became two screams-three screams-, no, FOUR screams.

Shiki paled, before she dived down. "NEKU!" she shouted. Kairi gasped. "Shiki no!" she shouted.

Alas, it was too late. A bolt of lightning hit Shiki, causing her to scream in pain just like the others. She fell to the ground, landing roughly on her side. By her were the unconscious bodies of Sora, Aura, Riku, and Neku.

"You there! This is a warning! Come any nearer and try to disrupt our match and you'll suffer the same fate!" Roxas shouted to Kairi above. Kairi realized that at the height where she was at, he still couldn't recognize her.

"There was no need for that, Roxas! This is between you and me-keep everyone else out of this!" Ven roared, glaring at his brother. Roxas chuckled.

"Isn't that warning a bit too late, Ventus? Either way, they really shouldn't have tried to intervene with our duel."

"THEY TRIED TO BECAUSE THEY KNEW SOMETHING WAS WRONG! AND THERE IS! You cheated, after all." Ven accused. Roxas scoffed.

"Still sour about that? Geez, move on to something else already." He smirked. "I can help with that." He suddenly charged toward Ven, summoning his two keyblades once more. Ven barely blocked his double strike with his own.

He narrowed his eyes and tried to launch an Aeroga at Roxas. Roxas, however, was able to dodge the spell easily before he slashed at Ven from the side.

Ven hissed at being hit, but quickly retaliated with a hit to Roxas' face using the other end of his keyblade. Roxas merely shot a Thundaga at Ven, who cried out in pain.

As Kairi continued to watch, forced to drift above the scene, she noticed how Ven seemed to slow in dodging attacks and attacking. She remembered on hat he said earlier about Roxas cheating-did he somehow manage to make Ven weak?

If he did, then it was working, for Ven was getting hurt more than Roxas. He was getting more tired as well-even from where she was, Kairi could see the weariness his movements contained, and how much louder his panting became.

Roxas, meanwhile, looked as if he hadn't broke a sweat. He was smirking, obviously not tired-and wouldn't be anytime soon.

_This isn't a fair fight, _Kairi thought, eyes wide. _At the rate Ven is going, he'll soon have no more energy to even stand. Then, he'll be forced to give up. _

She bit her lip. She hated being forced to do nothing but watch as her new friend was getting defeated. Aura was right-it made you feel useless.

_I can't do anything...or else I'll end up like the others. _

Suddenly she heard Ven cry out. she looked down and gasped at the sight. It looked like Roxas had struck a serious blow into Ven's left shoulder.

Kairi's eyes widened as he forced Ven into the ground, dug his keyblade into the wound, causing Ven to cry out in pain. Roxas grinned almost sadistically as he twisted his keyblade deeper into the wound. Ven's screams grew in volume as more blood seeped out.

He struggled to free himself, but Roxas had placed a foot on his stomach. Add that with what he was doing to his shoulder, and soon he could only lay helplessly on the ground as he screamed.

Kairi was horrified. It was like watching a train wreck-she wanted to look away, but she couldn't. She could see the sheer pain in Ven's eyes, the grin that appeared on Roxas' face.

_No..._

Ven was turning paler by the second.

_No..._

Her friends laid unconscious on the ground.

_NO..._

And now Roxas would win.

"NO!" And without a second thought, she dove straight down to Roxas and Ven, not caring about her safety.

She jumped off her broom, barely landing on her feet by Ven. Her broom flew into Roxas, knocking him away from Ven. She knelt by Ven and pulled out the Keyblade out of the wound, throwing it far away from them. Ven cried out before he looked up at her.

"Kairi, what are you doing? You have to stay out of this." he said weakly. Kairi's voice was firm as she spoke-looking back, she wondered how it even came from her mouth.

"No. I will not stand by and just watch as you get hurt. This is wrong. This is unfair. I'm going to do what's right."

She stood up, before walking in front of him. She glared at Roxas, her anger taking over her fear.

Roxas narrowed his eyes, but they widened. He laughed harshly. "Oh what a coincidence! I wouldn't have expected YOU of all people to be here-much less be on a broom. Makes sense though, considering you've done idiotic things before."

Kairi didn't respond-instead she just took the Spark tome Aqua had given her. She knew what she had to do.

Now was the time for her to Awaken.

_My friends...I need to protect my friends. _

Her eyes started to glow a bright violet as the tome flew open in her right hand. Her other hand began to summon purple sparks before they turned to a violet glove surrounding her hand.

Her body was soon surrounded in a golden aura. She felt suddenly filled with power. She looked at the tome, and suddenly the words made sense. They created a language she could read and speak. And thus, she began chanting the spell.

Roxas took a step back, wary. _It looks like she's having her Awakening...but this doesn't seem like any regular Awakening. _he thought. He took a step forward, about to try and stop her with his remaining Keyblade, but he was too slow.

She glared at him with fierce eyes, as she held out her hand toward him. She then shouted a single word.

"SPARKGA!"

Instead of a single ring appearing like it was supposed to, the tome instead allowed her to summon three rings of light crystals, performing the third level spell instead. The rings hit Roxas repeatedly, knocking him back and forth gaining multiple hits.

Ven watched with awe as his friend defended him against his brother. _Kairi...you've finally Awakened... _he thought, slightly smiling.

Suddenly he heard a weak voice cry out another spell. "C-Curaga." He was soon surrounded in a green aura, healing his wounds, while the bells signifying the spell rang softly into the air.

Then he heard it say another spell-"E-esuna." This time a purple aura surrounded him, glittering slightly.

He realized that while the Curaga spell had only managed to stop his most major wound (the one Roxas took time to torture him with) from bleeding, the Esuna spell made the holy water that had been in him disappear.

He looked to where the voice had come from and found a weary Shiki looking back at him. By her were a green and purple tone with white designs on their spines-the marks of healing tomes.

She smiled weakly, and mouthed 'Good luck', before her eyes drooped closed and she fell unconscious once more.

Ven could only stare for a few seconds in stunned silence before his eyes filled with righteous fury. Shiki and his friends had come by their own choice to try and help him. Now they were hurt.

They SHOULDN'T have been hurt.

With his newfound strength, he managed to stand on his feet once more. He gripped the handle of his Keyblade.

Kairi's spell was now fading, and Roxas was slowly getting back onto his feet. Kairi's power was also beginning to fade, due to her Awakening almost being complete.

He walked over and stood in front of her as the spell disappeared. "Thank you Kairi. Now it's my turn." Ven said before he charged toward his weakened twin.

Kairi nodded and rushed off the battlefield as she watched the two duel once more. This time though, Ven was winning. Roxas could barely hold up his Keyblade to block an incoming blow.

Finally he was knocked to the ground. Ven held his keyblade in front of Roxas' neck, staring neutrally at him. Roxas looked up at his twin, before sighing and puts up his hands as best he could in surrender.

"Alright, alright. Tradidero, tradidero. I surrender. You can go and kill me now." he said as boredly as he could, before looking away. However, Ven took his keyblade away from Roxas' neck. He held a hand.

Roxas looked at it in surprise before accepting it and standing up. Ven looked at his brother firmly, before his eyes saddened. He began to speak.

"Roxas...what happened? We just fought-and we could've killed each other. What caused you to change? I remember when you would always demand a fight be fought fair. Now...what happened to you?" he asked softly.

Roxas glared. "What happened to me? WHAT HAPPENED TO ME?! I grew jealous of you, alright?! You'd always be in the spotlight, surrounded by all your friends and always praised by big brother Cloud." He said this in a mocking tone.

"Meanwhile, where I was? Left in the dark, all alone, never getting even one compliment! I was so alone, Ven-and you never even noticed! Then I finally found a group of people that accepted me, and I was happy! I looked up to them-even started drinking human blood to please them!"

"Finally I got a chance to prove myself by leading a small group out to feed. But that's when your little FRIEND there-" He glared at Kairi. "-fought back and caused us to retreat. I was able to get a second chance, but by then it was too late. They lost their trust in me, and caused me and my group to get caught."

"..." Ven was silent for a few moments before speaking again. "...Roxas...why didn't you say anything?" he asked, eyes holding a lot of pain. Roxas was caught off guard by this. "W-what?"

"Why didn't you tell us? All this time...Roxas, we thought you WANTED to be alone. You would always shut yourself in your room, and no matter what I invited you to, you'd always turn it down."

"Roxas...we can't read your mind. If something's wrong, you should've talked to us about it. Because, while you may think otherwise, we love you, Roxas. We really do." Ven's eyes teared up, but he tried to blink them away.

"Ever since Mom and Dad died...it's always been the three of us. Remember when we used to hang out together, just laughing and having fun? I loved those times. So did Cloud. And so did you."

"Then one day, you just started drifting away. Cloud thought you were going through a phase or something. But soon you shut us out. We had no idea what was going on-all we did know was that we were losing our brother."

"A-and then, we found out about you d-drinking human blood. Oh Roxas..." Ven bowed down his head, before he shouted, eyes closed to hold back his tears.

"You have NO IDEA HOW SCARED WE WERE! WE THOUGHT YOU WOULD GET EXILED! And we wouldn't have had a chance to say goodbye." His voice was now choked up. "We would've lost you for good."

"I'm sorry, Roxas. I'm sorry I failed you as family. And I know Cloud would say the same. We love you-and we do care..."

Roxas looked stunned. He was silent for a few moments before his eyes began to fill with tears. Unknown to anyone at the time, the human blood that had corrupted and clouded his mind now disappeared. It was because of his realization that his family still loved him, no matter what he had done.

"V-ven...I...I..." He closed his eyes, causing the tears to spill out before he rushed forward and hugged him. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm the one who should be apologizing, not you or Cloud."

"You're right-I caused us to drift apart. Drinking human blood made it worse. I became someone who was cruel, sadistic, uncaring-plain evil."

"I hurt Cloud. I hurt you. I've hurt so many innocent people...I'm sorry."

Ven didn't respond for a few moments as his older brother cried into his shoulders. Then he started to hug him back, as his tears spilled over as well. "It's ok big brother. It's ok." he replied softly.

Kairi watched the scene, feeling herself slightly smile. Hopefully, things would be alright for now.

She then heard someone behind her groan. She turned and saw that the others had woken up. Instantly, Aura and Neku leaped up, both looking very pissed off.

"WHERE THE HELL IS HE I'M GONNA BURN HIM TO ASHES-"

"THAT WAS THE LAST STRAW I'M GOING TO TEAR HIM TO SHREDS-"

Riku, Shiki and Sora sweatdropped as their friends ranted before checking each other for injuries.

"Riku, are you alright?"

"I'm fine. You Shiki?"

"I'm alright. What about you Sora?"

"No...I have a huge headache from Aura and Neku's yelling."

"SHH!" Kairi glared at them before motioning to the two hugging brothers. The others blinked in surprise. Finally Sora spoke what they were all thinking in their minds.

"Uh...did we miss something?"

Kairi laughed sheepishly. "Um...it's a long story."

* * *

**AND THUS, THE DUEL ENDS! Man, so much happened! Kairi had her Awakening, Ven won the duel, and Roxas...turns out to be a tragic villain(?). Heh...sorry if the fighting wasn't up to your standards, but I prefer words to describe the emotion that drives it, of the fighters themselves and of any bystanders. That alone can tell much of a match's fighting spirit.**

**Aura: *flatly* What?**

**...you wouldn't understand. *sticks tongue out at her* Anyway, I felt like the brothers' reconciliation was a bit cheesy, but whatever. XD SO! What's gonna happen now? I dunno-but perhaps something lurks in the shadows nearby?...**

**Please leave a review, advice is appreciated, and flames are no match for Aura's flames.**

**Aura: *grins* I BURN! *shoots a Firaga at the screen* Heh, RWBY reference.**


	8. The Capture

**HAI! Sorry for a slightly late update, but at last it is here! Let's look at the reviews.**

**_CirciFox81314_****- Like I said in the post Author's Note, Roxas is kinda a Tragic Villain. I wanted you guys to feel bad for him. WHO KNOWS WHAT IS IN THE SHADOWS?! Only I know...sort of...heh, glad I cleared things up. XD**

**_InnocentSeranade_****-How DID Kairi perform a spell that wasn't in that tome? We might find out soon. Of course Shiki can use tomes! She needs them to perform healing spells!...I don't know how she fights in TWEWY, so...RWBY SEASON 2 FTW! XD No wonder you seemed so, well, 'BLAH' in your review! Do get some rest.**

**_Logan-fireofall_****- Aura, answer this for me please.**

**Aura: OK! :D Wow Logan...doesn't it hurt when you set yourself on fire? O_O It seems like it'd hurt...AND NO ONE TAKES MY PLACE FOR BURNING FLAMES! D: As for being in this story! Well...um...Myst is technically planning this out as she writes it, and right now she has no plans for adding OCs (except one, but he might not appear for awhile, sadly). BUT! Based on what she thinks up, there's a good chance you could appear. Maybe in a minor appearance, but still appear. So there! :D**

**And this is the same response we'll give anyone who also wants an OC to appear. Maybe, maybe not-all depends on what role I think up that could suit your character. 50/50 chance here.**

**_dario. flaman_****- Heh, classic Sora. XD YEAH! AFTER 7 CHAPTERS, SHE AWAKENS! Thank goodness. -_- Gotta admit, that duel was freaking awesome. Yep! As long as Roxas stay away from human blood, he should be ok! But that might be harder than it seems...**

**Aura: Wait, what?**

**_Muffinmilk317_****- WOOO! VICTORY FOR ROXAS AND KAIRI! BUT WHO KNOWS HOW LONG IT'LL LAST FOR ROXAS?!**

**Aura: Why must you be such a downer? D:**

**_cutenessfan19_****- Yeah...brotherly love. :'D But Roxas will need all the brotherly love he can get...**

**Aura: STOP DOING THAT! You're freaking me-and possibly others-out about Roxas!**

**...*grins***

**Aura: I'm telling you guys, she's evil. -_-**

**Favs: **

**Nosotros tenemos UNO nuevo...uh, member. We have one new member, and that is _Wildgirl404_! YEAH! :D**

**Follows: **

**Two new members!: ****_AkiDreamz_ and _Wildgirl404_****! HAI AKI!~ :D Hello AGAIN, Wild! Welcome!**

**SO! Last time, Kairi and the others rushed to Ven's duel with Roxas. HOWEVER! All of the, except Kairi herself got knocked out by Roxas for trying to interfere, cause Neku and Sora thought something was wrong. The duel wasn't going well on Ven's end, until Kairi finally had enough and weakened Roxas by finally having her Awakening! **

**Ven was quickly healed by a semi-conscious Shiki, and so won the duel. Afterwards, as the others regained consciousness, Roxas and Ven made up, and became brothers again. So now what? Will Roxas be able to fight his dark urges? How will Kairi cope with her newfound power? And what's this about a conspiracy? LET'S FIND OUT!**

**Disclaimer: *sings* I do not own, own, own, Kingdom Hearts!~ Or, or, or, Final Fantasy!~ Not even The, The, The, World Ends With You!~ So why do you, you, you, keep assuming I do? **

* * *

It had been several weeks since the duel. Kairi and the others had slowly gotten used to Roxas being friends with Ven again.

When Kairi had returned home that night, she found Aqua waiting in the living room. After telling her what had happened, Aqua smiled.

"I'm glad he is no longer bitter. Who is better than brothers? Brothers should always be friends." she had said.

"Aqua, I have a question. When I Awakened, I was able to use a spell that seemed to be slightly different from Spark. How was I able to do that?" Kairi had asked. Aqua smiled and grabbed the tome.

Without a word, she rubbed the title clean, showing where dirt had covered the last part of it. It now said: _Sparkga_.

"You would've used Spark if you hadn't Awakened-that would be Sparkga at half power. I had a hunch you would Awaken though, because you showed so much concern for your friend. If he was in danger, then you would've risked your well-being just to protect him. And you did." she explained smiling.

Now, things were going well. Cloud, Ven and Roxas were slowly reconnecting as family. She and Aura were becoming very close with Sora, Riku, Ven, Neku and Shiki. Everything was going well.

...except for her powers.

"Ah, ah, ACHOO!" Kairi sneezed suddenly, sending a wild breeze across the table. That wasn't the only thing though.

"AHH! FIRE! FIRE! FIIIIRE!" Sora shouted, panicking as he ran around the kitchen, looking for water.

Neku swore as he sat up. "Kairi! We talked about this!" he shouted as he looked for a bucket to fill with water.

"Oh dear! Sora, calm down!" Shiki said as she attempted to stop the panicking werewolf.

Riku sighed. "Great..." he said as he watched the flames eat away his workbook.

"AHHHHHH! WATER! WATER! FIND FREAKING WATER!" Aura screamed as she stared in horror at the flames.

At last Neku had a bucket of water which he threw over the table. The fire was instantly doused, with everyone else being soaked with water.

Neku sweatdropped. "Um...sorry." he muttered. Kairi looked guilty. "Oh, I'm sorry everyone. I didn't mean for that to happen..." she said, sighing.

"Oh, it's fine Kairi. It was an accident, after all." Shiki said, smiling at her friend. Riku sighed.

"Though you should learn to control it..." he said, trying to find any salvaging worksheet. Kairi sighed. "I know, I'm trying my hardest." she said, thinking of all the books she read on the subject.

Sora walked over to Aura. She looked frightened. "Hey Aura, are you ok?" he asked.

"Y-yeah. I'm fine. Fire just freaks me out, that's all." Aura said nervously. "You're scared of fire, Aura?" Shiki asked, surprised.

"Yeah...it has to do with some nightmares I had when I was little. I never got over them, so..." Aura sighed.

"I thought it was cause most witches die from being burned at the stake." Neku commented, earning a slap on the arm by Shiki. "Neku! Don't be so insensitive!" she chided.

Aura said very dryly, "Dude, that ain't even funny. I mean honestly..." Neku glared.

"Alright, alright! I get it!"

Riku sighed as he stared at the mess. "Alright, who wants to explain to Mr. Kuja about the ruined worksheets?" he asked.

Kairi sighed. "I'll explain. Oh guys, why should I do? I've read every book, but nothing's working!" she complained.

"Probably cause each person who Awakens is different. We're like snowflakes-not one person is alike! Well, except for twins like Ven and Roxas..." Sora muttered.

"No, you were on to something Sora. They may share the same appearance, but not the same personality or thoughts. So, what have you tried so far, Kairi?" Riku asked.

"Well, I've tried thinking peaceful things! But that didn't work. Then I tried imagining it to be in total control! But that didn't work either. Now I just drunk a potion that was supposed to help, but um...it just made it worse, apparently." Kairi said, sighing.

"Hmm...haven't you asked Aqua?" Aura asked. "I have! But she only said I had to figure it out on my own! Oh, why can't I get a straight answer for once." Kairi asked, exasperated.

"Well, what tends to make your powers go berserk?" Shiki asked. "Um...it seems to happen the most when I'm stressed. Like right now-I was stressed about completing the homework." Kairi replied.

Sora snapped his fingers. "That's it then! Just relax, and think happy thoughts! Be like the Little Engine that Could-he says he thinks he can, he thinks he can, he thinks he can! You can too Kairi-YOU CAN!" Sora cheered, a light shining on him.

It goes on and off as Aura hit the flashlight. "Crud! The batteries are dying out!" she cursed as she tried to keep it lit up. Neku facepalmed.

Kairi sweatdropped, before nodding. "Ok..." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Peace, Quiet, Happiness. Peace, Quiet, Happiness. Peace, Quiet-"

Suddenly the stove caught on fire. "AHHH! FIRE! FIRE!" Sora screamed as he ran around panicking. "CRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAP-" Aura did the same, freaking out.

Kairi watched as Shiki and Neku went outside for the water hose. "...oops." She said weakly.

Riku shook his head. "We still got a long way to go..." he said, sighing.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ven and Roxas were walking home. They had gone to the store, and were now coming back with groceries.

They were also arguing.

"Look, all I'm saying is that Batman is the better superhero! He doesn't NEED powers and people are still scared of him!" Roxas said, glaring at Ven.

Ven shook his head. "Superman is called the Man of Steel for a REASON though! He's the one everyone looks up to, ESPECIALLY when things are bad!" he argued.

"Funny how he gets severely weakened from a green stone." Roxas said dryly, smirking.

"Funny how Batman could die from practically anything." Ven countered.

"AND YET HE DOESN'T WHICH MAKES HIM EVEN MORE AWESOME!"

"ROXAS FOR CRYING OUT LOUD-"

Suddenly Roxas froze, standing still on the sidewalk. Ven bumped into him, nearly dropping the groceries he was carrying. "Oh...what now, Roxas?" He asked exasperated, before he noticed Roxas' pale face.

He looked ahead and saw that three people were in front of them. One was a red spiky haired man, with emerald green eyes and tattooed teardrops under them.

Another was also a man, but had pink shoulder length hair. His eyes were a clear blue, and while his face had some feminine features, a cruel smirk was plastered on his face.

The last was a woman with bright green eyes and blonde hair. She had two strands standing up like antennae. She was twirling a knife in her hand without harming herself, smiling cruelly.

They all wore black-like Roxas had. Ven noticed that while the pink haired man and blonde woman were facing Roxas, the red head was leaning on the walls, eyes downward and arms crossed, as if he didn't want to face Roxas.

However, he soon looked up and looked at Roxas with supposed neutrality-but his eyes contained barely suppressed sadness. The pink haired man spoke.

"So, this is where you've been, Roxas. Never knew you had a twin." he said, eyes flickering over to Ven. Roxas stepped in front of Ven protectively. He glared at them.

"Yeah-I finally came to my senses, unlike you three and the others." he replied, looking at each one. "Marluxia. Larxene. Axel..." His voice trailed off slightly at Axel's name, before returning to its angry tone.

"If you're here to try and bring me back, you're wasting your time."

Larxene laughed-the sound of it sent shivers down Ven's spine. She smiled, showing her fangs. "Oh Roxas, you can't possibly mean that. Why, don't you miss the smell of human blood?"

With that, she took out a bag filled with a familiar red liquid. Ven's eyes widened as he smelled it.

_It smells...wonderful..._

Suddenly Roxas gripped Ven's arm tightly. "Nice try, but neither me nor my brother are falling for your trap." he said flatly, and Ven realized he had stopped him from stepping further toward them.

Larxene's smile disappeared as she put away the bag. "You have one last chance, Roxas. It'd be quite a shame to kill someone so young...and so full of potential." she said, smiling cruelly once more.

"Like I said, I ain't coming back! Now why don't you move aside already and let us through?!" Roxas snarled, ready to lunge forward.

That was a bad move. Larxene immediately threw the knife in her other hand towards him, grazing his shoulder. While Roxas was distracted, Marluxia stepped forward and punched him hard in the face.

Roxas yelped as he fell to the ground, Marluxia and Larxene standing over him. Ven dropped his groceries. "Roxas!" he yelled, about to step forward to help him.

He was stopped when someone grabbed him from behind. Ven struggled, attempting to get free. He managed to look around to see Axel holding him back, but he wasn't looking at him.

Ven looked back and gasped, seeing how Marluxia and Larxene were starting to beat up Roxas. Roxas was trying to fight back, but soon he had no more energy and was forced to give in.

"NO! Stop! You have to stop! Please! Stop it!" Ven couldn't take it, seeing his brother getting hurt. He shouted, tears building up in his eyes, "Stop it! Please! STOP IT!"

Just when it looked like Roxas would pass out, they finally did stop. As they stepped back, Ven could see the massive bruises on Roxas' face and body; he had a black eye and a split lip; he was bleeding from numerous cuts; overall, he looked battered.

"Hmph. You act all tough, yet inside you're just a weakling-I can see that hasn't changed." Marluxia commented, sneering. Larxene walked over to Ven and Axel. She grabbed Ven's chin, causing him to look at her in the eye.

"Aw, what's the matter little boy?" she asked in a baby voice. "Is the little boy scared? Does the little boy want us to stop? Oh look, the little boy wants to cry!" she laughed, smiling her cruel smile.

"Do you HAVE to mock him?"

Larxene looked behind Ven-he realized it must've been Axel who had spoken. "Oh come on, Axel! I was just having a little fun with our new toy~" Larxene commented, smirking.

"We can't take him! Our orders were to convince Roxas to come back, and if that didn't work then to make him regret leaving! There was nothing about kidnapping!" Axel stated, and Ven could tell he was glaring at her.

"Oh, but that was before we even knew he had a twin brother! And it looks like Roxas cares for him a great deal. If we take him back as a hostage, surely we can convince our leader that he'll be useful." Marluxia said, smirking as well.

Ven's eyes widened. _Kidnapping?...Hostage?... _"No...you can't do this! Why can't you just accept that Roxas doesn't want to be a part of you guys anymore?!" he cried out. Suddenly, he was punched in the face.

Marluxia looked at him coolly as a bruise began to form on Ven's cheek. "Shut up you nitwit. It's settled then. We'll take him and use him as a hostage. Is that clear?" he asked the other two.

Larxene smirked and nodded. Ven could hear Axel sigh but say nothing else. Marluxia walked over to Roxas and grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him up. Roxas could only hang there, limp as a doll.

"Listen up you brat. We're going to take your twin brother for a little while. We'll be keeping him until the next full moon. On that night, you must come to Nocturne Valley at midnight. There, you must choose to rejoin us or remain separate from us. Choose wisely-otherwise your brother will die."

With that, he dropped Roxas onto the ground, before walking back to Larxene and Axel. Ven's last image before his eyes were blinded by darkness was seeing his brother reach out toward him with a bloody hand.

_Roxas..._

...

_Ven... _

* * *

**DOOOOOH SHIIIIIIIIIT! KAIRI CAN'T CONTROL HER POWERS! ROXAS IS HURT! AND VEN'S BEEN CAPTURED! *sobs***

**Ahem. Sorry, kinda lost it there. SO! Ven is now a hostage! And if Roxas doesn't make up his mind, Ven may get hurt...or worse! Maybe Kairi and the others can help...but how much help will they be? Especially Kairi due to her not having control over her powers? I guess we'll find out next time!**

**And sorry if Axel seems too quiet, you could say he's still coping with losing Roxas and being forced to do something he does not like.**

**And Larxene has appeared...take notice of her, ok? Just saying...*grins***

**Please leave a review, advice is appreciated, and flames will be TURNED INTO ICE! YEAH! Just go with it...**


	9. The First Night

**HEY THERE PEOPLEZ! XD I am so psyched for summer!...and freaked out about high school. :P**

**Plus, last chapter was Chapter 8. Axel appeared there. :D Just saying...**

**Reviews:**

**_InnocentSerenade_****-XD Maybe Kairi should! Ooh that's actually a good idea...I have to remember that. What IS up with Aura's fear of fire?...maybe we'll find out sometime. Gosh Serenade-it's not like Roxas wanted Ven to be kidnapped! XD Don't worry, you'll love him soon enough. **

**_CirciFox81314_****- CALM DOWN! Panicking never helps! If we remain calm, we can get through this-aw, who am I kidding, VEN'S GONNA DIE! *sobs***

**Aura: *slaps me***

**OW! Thanks...Ahem. We gotta have some hope. Oh so THAT'S how they fight! Hmm...I don't know how yet, but somehow I'm gonna incorporate those abilities. SOMEHOW!...thanks for the info. :D It's alright, I love researching my favorite games too. FIRE EMBLEM: AWAKENING FTW! XD That's my favorite game. Sadly, I've lost it. DX**

**_Muffinmilk317_****- I like Ice too! Sometimes. I DID IT BECAUSE I CAN! *laughs evilly* MWAHAHAHAHA! XD Ah good! You noticed Larxene! She's a real witch...heh.**

**Aura: *whispers* She censored that.**

**_RubyDarknessAngel_-O_O WHOA! CALM DOWN FOR A SECOND MY FRIENDS! I said there was a 50/50 chance ya'll could join. I don't want to overload the character limit. Know what, I'll explain more in a PM.**

**_Valerie_-Hello! :D You've read up to now? AWESOME! Well, you gotta read this chappie to find out if they'll be ok and what they're gonna do! And yes, Namine and Vanitas will be in this story...they'll just come later. :D**

**_dario. flaman_-...XD**

**Aura: *flatly* Very funny.**

**It was. XD DUN DUN DUN! LARXENE APPEARS! EVERYONE'S GONNA DIE!...lol no. XD SUFFER THE CLIFFHANGER! IT BRINGS ME JOY! *laughs evilly before coughing* Ahem. Read on to see if Ven will be ok. :D**

**Favs: **

**We gots TWO new members!: _Lulu56048_ and _RubyDarknessAngel_! HEY LULU! :D And thanks for finally joining Ruby!**

**Follows:**

**Three new members, which is the two above and the awesome ****_KHgirl2013_****! YEAH!**

**SO! Last time, we found out that Kairi was having more than a little trouble controlling her new powers. As she was dealing with that, it seems that Roxas' past has caught up with him, in the form of his former teammates. After refusing to rejoin them, they end up kidnapping poor Ven to force him to join! Will Roxas give in to their demands? Or will he refuse and have Ven's blood on his hands? Or maybe Kairi and the others will somehow be able to help? Or perhaps someone else?...LET'S FIND OUT IN THIS CHAPTER OF WITCH'S DESTINY!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts nor do I own Final Fantasy or TWEWY. So stop bothering me, ya kids!**

**Aura: She owns me though!~  
**

* * *

It was midnight when Aqua heard a loud knock on the door. Putting down her book, she got out of bed and put on a nightrobe before heading downstairs to answer it.

She was wondering on who would be knocking at that hour when she opened it and was met face to face with a wide eyed Tifa.

"Tifa? What are you doing here, do you know what time it is?" Aqua asked, confused. She quickly got a bad feeling as Tifa bit her lip, and saw the worry in her eyes.

"Aqua, you need to get Kairi and come with me. Roxas is in the hospital."

* * *

As soon as she saw his room, Kairi ran towards it, heart beating. She didn't want to believe that Roxas was hurt when she was woken up in the night, but now she wanted to know if her new friend would be ok and what had happened.

She flung open the door and gasped. On the bed laid an unconscious Roxas, looking badly beaten up. He was covered in man bandages, and even had a cast on his arm.

By his side were the others and his brother, Cloud. Cloud looked haggard; his eyes looked bloodshot and his face was creased with pure worry as he watched over his younger brother.

Shiki looked as if she'd been crying; Neku looked neutral, but was comforting her; Sora looked very worried and anxious to hear news; Riku looked calm, but seemed very tense; and Aura seemed worried and very nervous.

Kairi noticed that Ven was nowhere in sight, and wondered where he was. Just then, Aqua and Tifa came into the room along with the doctor, and everyone stood up, anxious to hear the news.

"Well sir? Will he be alright?" Cloud asked, worry in his voice. The doctor, (apparently a fairy, or 'sparrow men' as the males were called) looked at Roxas before looking back at Cloud.

"He's going to be alright." he said, and everyone let out a sigh of relief. "He'll be asleep for awhile, but in the morning he should be fine. You vampires heal very quickly, so he'll soon be back to himself in a few days or so." the doctor commented.

Cloud thanked him and after he left, Kairi looked at the others. "Ok, now that we know Roxas will be ok...what happened?! How did he end up like this?" she asked.

"That's just it. We don't know." Tifa replied, answering her question. "I found him on the sidewalk near my bar after getting a call from Cloud. Apparently he sent him and Ven out to get some groceries, but they never came back." she said.

"It was horrible. Roxas was just laying there unconscious, with the groceries all over the ground. It looked as if someone-or some people-had ambushed him and Ven." She looked down. "The worst part though, is that Ven was nowhere near the scene. He just disappeared."

"So...he's missing?!" Kairi cried out, horrified. "Other vampires are out looking for him right now." Cloud said, speaking up. He sighed. "I'm hoping he's alright, but judging from the condition Roxas was found in..."

Everyone became silent. No one wanted to think about how hurt Ven could possibly be. Kairi wondered who could've done this-and why?

Cloud sighed. "I'll stay here with him. You all better get back and get some rest." Aqua walked up to him. "Here. You'll need this then." she said as she handed him a blanket and a pillow. (She apparently had brought it from her home.)

As Cloud thanked her, Sora looked at his friends. "Guys...what do you think happened?" he asked. "There's a good chance Roxas and Ven had some bad luck running into a couple of thugs. Why Ven would disappear is beyond me though." Riku stated.

"Oh...I have a bad feeling you guys! I wish this never happened in the first place!" Shiki said, biting her lip. Neku sighed. "We can't change the past-so now, we have to try and deal with the consequences." he said.

Aura sighed. "Until Roxas wakes up, we got no clue on what happened. I just hope that Roxas will know where Ven went, and that things will turn out ok." she said, eyes worried.

"We all do Aura. None of us want something bad to happen to Ven or Roxas." Sora said. Kairi sighed. "I guess all we can do for now is just hope for the best."

Everyone nodded as they looked at Roxas and silently wished he'd wake up soon.

* * *

Ven yelped as he landed on the floor painfully. His ankles and wrists were bound with rope that had been dipped in holy water, so he couldn't even try to break free. Already he could feel it burning his skin.

He looked up to see his jailer, a tall scary looking man with black dreadlocks, lock the door before walking away. Ven shivered as he shifted to get into a sitting position. The cell was cold, and very damp.

He looked out at the barred window, wondering where he was. His captors had blinded him so that he couldn't see where they took him. All he knew was that they were in some sort of stone castle-their footsteps had echoed enough to tell him it was a large castle, and he could smell the mildew.

As he watched the moon come into view, he noticed it was almost full. He gulped-that meant Roxas would have to decide soon on what to do. He hoped his brother was alright-he never wanted anything bad to happen to him.

Ven looked down, ashamed of himself. Why hadn't he fought harder? He ended up getting caught too easily and could do nothing as his brother was badly beaten. And now, his brother may have to rejoin his old gang in order to save him.

He sighed. Judging by the moon, he had at most 3 nights before it would be the full moon. He wondered exactly what they'd do to him here until the time came. Would they just leave him, along in this cell? Or worse, torture him for sheer entertainment? Ven didn't want to meet that blonde woman again...

Suddenly he heard footsteps coming toward his cell. Ven's eyes widened, and he tried to hide in the darkness of one of the corners, in an attempt to get far away from the cell door.

The footsteps came closer and closer, until they stopped right in front of his cell. Then suddenly, a tray of food was slid into his cell. It was a measly meal, with a cup of water and some food scraps on a plate.

Ven watched the figure kneel down. Then they spoke. "Are you going to eat or not?" he asked.

He realized it was the red haired man who had come-Axel, that was his name. Ven shifted so that he could see him. "I would, if my arms were free." he said in response.

Axel facepalmed. "Oh, I forgot about that. Hold on a sec." he said before snapping his fingers. Suddenly, the ropes around Ven's wrists were gone, and he could move them freely again. As he pulled himself toward the tray, he looked at Axel.

"You're not looking at me in the eye." he noted, noticing how Axel seemed to either look past him or down at the floor. Axel sighed. "You remind me of your brother, appearance wise. You are twins, after all." he said.

"Were you two close?" Ven asked, wondering if he and Roxas were friends. Roxas did seem to be sad when he had seen Axel with the group...

Axel shrugged, though he slightly smiled, as if remembering a happy memory. "Yeah, we , he never mentioned me?" he asked, sounding curious.

"Well, no. You were part of the past that he wanted to forget. Which now he can't, cause you guys couldn't leave him alone." Ven stated, sounding slightly angry.

Axel sighed. "Look, it wasn't my idea to try and kidnap you-""Then why did you participate?! I hate being a hostage, but what's worse is being a hostage and the only way I'll get free is if Roxas joins you guys! And I know that's the last thing he wants to do, but he'll do it just to make sure I'm safe!"

"You say you were close to him, just like friends. If you were friends, then why did you just stand by and do nothing as he was getting beat up?! Why didn't you try and help him?! WHY DIDN'T YOU STOP IT?!" Ven shouted, his anger getting the best of him.

That's when a knife launched itself toward his shoulder and pinned him against the wall. Ven cried out in pain as blood began to seep out of the wound. Behind Axel, Larxene stepped into view.

"My my, aren't we getting angry? Losing your temper is bad, little boy-which means you need to be punished." she said, before snapping her fingers.

Instantly, Ven was wrapped nearly head to toe in ropes that had been dipped in holy water. He started to scream in pain. Larxene chuckled. "Ah, how I love the sound of screams~" she said, before turning to Axel.

"Why don't you go back to the others, Axel? I'm sure they'll need your assistance." she said, smiling cruelly at him. Axel narrowed his eyes, but said nothing as he got up and silently started to walk back.

Larxene called out to him, "By the way, Axel-you better remember your duty." she said, smile disappearing and voice sounding threatening. Axel stopped, and just nodded, before continuing on, trying to ignore Ven's screams.

Larxene looked back at the suffering Ven and smirked. "You certainly look regretful for your actions. But just to be sure, I think I'll leave you like this for, say, an hour? Maybe 2? Hopefully, you'll learn your lesson." And with that, Larxene left as well, her laugh echoing in the halls.

Ven watched her leave, pain wracking his body. As he continued to scream, unable to do anything else, he hoped this nightmare would end soon.

* * *

Roxas woke up, eyes wide as he sat up in bed. This startled everyone who had been sitting by calmly.

"R-Roxas! You're awake!" Shiki exclaimed, looking very happy. "Finally. And I thought Sora was a lazy bum..." Kairi commented, prompting a "Hey!" from Sora.

Riku smiled. "Welcome back to the world. How are you?" he asked, as Neku went to find Cloud. Roxas groaned. "I just had the worst nightmare...ow." He winced as he moved his arm, which he was realized was in a cast.

He then examined himself to find many bandages covering his wounds. He blinked. "Am I...in the hospital?" he asked, and Aura nodded. "Yep! You were unconscious when you came in, and you had a lot of us freaking out." she said.

Just then, Neku and Cloud ran in. Cloud looked as if a weight had been taken off his shoulders. "Roxas! You're awake!" he said, before hugging his brother. Roxas looked startled, before he slowly hugged back.

"I'm sorry I worried you, Cloud." he said, and Cloud shook his head as he let go. "It's fine, Roxas. At least you're ok." he said, smiling slightly. Neku then cleared his throat.

"Ok, Roxas is awake. Now he can tell us what happened-right Roxas?" he asked, staring coldly at him. "Yeah! What did happen, Roxas?" Aura asked, eager to know.

Roxas frowned as he tried to recall what had happened before he lost consciousness.

_Roxas..._

He gasped. "VEN! No...Ven..." he said, placing his face into his hand. "What? What happened to Ven, Roxas?" Cloud asked, worried again. "...it's my fault. I let Ven down..." Roxas said, the memories returning one by one.

"Roxas. What. Happened?" Neku asked, looking angered. Shiki walked up, touching Neku's shoulder to calm him down. "Neku, calm down. He's remembering what happened." she said.

"Roxas...it's ok. We're not going to be mad at you. We just want to know what happened so we can find Ven." Kairi said, speaking softly as if to a frightened child.

Roxas looked at his brother and new found friends before he sighed. "Yesterday...at least, I think it was yesterday...Ven and I were walking home with the groceries. On the way, we met three people that..." He hesitated. "...that I knew in my old gang."

"They tried to convince me to rejoin them, but I refused. I ended up getting very angry, and threatened to fight them. That's when two of them ended up, well, ganging up on me and started beating me up." He winced.

"The other managed to grab Ven before he could jump in and help me out. They forced him to watch as they beat me up-I realized no matter how much I struggled, they were too strong for me."

"In the end, one of them told me that by the full moon, I had to meet them in Nocturne Valley and choose whether to join them or not. And to make sure that I would..." His voice cracked. "T-they took Ven to use him as a h-hostage."

He hid his face as he spoke. "I...I let Ven down. I should've fought harder...or, just not even TRY to pick a fight! Now he's in danger...all because of me." he said, his voice filled with guilt and regret.

Everyone was silent as the news slowly sunk in. Once it did, Cloud sank into his chair, looking horrified. Shiki burst into tears and sat down as well, frightened for her friend.

Aura gasped. "Aw ship..." she muttered while Sora's eyes widened. "No...this can't be..." he whispered. Riku's eyes widened as well, before he clenched his fists. Kairi gasped. _This can't be happening!_ she thought in horror.

Neku stepped up to Roxas, before he suddenly punched him dead in the face. Sora stood up and ran toward him. "Neku, what are you doing?!" he shouted, pulling his friend back before he could throw another punch.

Neku glared at Roxas, for once looking furious. "This idiot just caused one of our friends to get kidnapped! And now, who knows what the hell they're doing to him?! Ven wouldn't be with them if it wasn't for this piece of-"

"NEKU SHUT UP!" Aura shouted, glaring at him. "Roxas did the best he could! It's not like he wanted Ven to be in this situation! It's like what you said, what's done is done, we can't do anything about it now!"

"We'll just have to deal with the consequences-in this case, find a way to save Ven! So shut up, and save your anger for the bastards who took him in the first place!" She shouted.

"Aura's right. Now's not the time to point fingers. We have to find Ven and somehow save him before the full moon appears." Riku said, before looking at Neku. "I'm angry too, Neku-but Ven needs us right now." he said firmly.

"...plus, look at Roxas. Can't you see? He never wanted this to happen. He's changed..." Sora said, looking worriedly at Neku. Roxas had taken the punch as if it never happened. He looked at Neku before sighing.

"I know you're angry Neku-and I can't blame you for it. But, we have to do something-Ven needs us." He winced. "The nightmare I had...I think it was in his perspective of the whole thing. It was terrible...he must be scared out of his mind."

He looked at each of them. "Look, I know I've made some mistakes-but doesn't everyone make some? No one's perfect. I've regretted what I've done, and still do-but you know, it's hard to turn over a new leaf when everyone around you can't let go of old grudges." he commented, looking at Neku.

Neku was silent, before he sighed. "...so, where do we start?" he asked, looking neutral again. Roxas looked at the afternoon sky.

"If it happened yesterday afternoon, then that means I have 2 nights left before the full moon comes. I bet they're holding Ven in the old stone castle." Roxas said. "So let's go in and rescue him!" Sora exclaimed.

"We can't do that, Sora. For one thing, we have no clue on how many of them there are." Aura commented. "Plus, Kairi can't even control her own powers." Shiki added. Kairi sighed. "Thanks for the encouragement, Shiki..." she muttered.

"Oh no, you guys stay out of this." Roxas said. "What?! Why?" Sora asked, shocked. "I already got Ven into this-I'm not letting all of you get hurt too. It's my problem, so I have to fix it." Roxas said.

"Dude, Ven's our friend, we gotta help him. Plus, we're not letting you rejoin that gang." Aura said, crossing her arms. "I don't care! I'm telling you guys, stay out of this!" Roxas shouted. He looked at Cloud. "That means you too, Cloud." he said.

"What? But-" "I already lost one brother, I'm not losing the other!" Roxas glared at Cloud, who merely sighed as he got up. "Very well, Roxas. I'm going to get something to eat." he said, before leaving the room.

Kairi looked at Roxas. "Roxas, please, just let us help-" "You're not, and that's final." Roxas glared at them all, not looking as if he;d change his mind. Finally Riku sighed. "Alright-if that's what you wish. Come on, guys. We gotta go."

He then walked out of the room, followed by Neku. Shiki sighed and looked sadly at Roxas before leaving as well. Aura got up and glared at Roxas before following suit. Sora then followed as well, his wolf ears drooping sadly.

Only Kairi was left. As she got up, she sighed. Then she said, "Roxas...at least know, that you're not alone in this. No one is ever alone-and if you ever need help, we'll be there. Whether we get hurt, or not." And as she followed the others, Roxas watched her go. Then he sighed.

_I know...but what other choice do I have?_

* * *

**Well, well, well. It seems like Roxas is refusing any help to save Ven! You can't blame him though, he just doesn't want anyone to get hurt. SO! What's gonna happen? Will Roxas end up joining his old gang? Will Ven still be alive? And will the others somehow be able to help? FIND OUT IN THE NEXT CHAPTER!**

**Please leave a review, advice is appreciated, and flames will be turned to fireworks! *makes fireworks***

**Aura: Ooh...pretty...**


	10. The Second Night

**Welcome back!**

**Aura: H****ey guys? *grins* Spoiler alert-**

**NO! *covers her mouth* *waves other hand frantically* Go to the Reviews! Go to the Reviews!**

**Reviews: **

**_CirciFox81314_- Groove Pawn...You mentioned that already. XD As for Penelope...*rubs back of head* To be honest, I never planned for more than two OCs to appear. Why, well, I found the more characters I add, the less attention I give to their personality and stuff. So the best I can do is to make any other OCs just a cameo, or a minor role. That way, I can focus on the actual main characters.**

**Aura: That's what she told Ruby. She told you here, cause, well, you don't got PM. :/**

**PLUS! 50/50 chance ON FINDING A ROLE! Writing this as I go...yep. XD**

**_RubyDarknessAngel_- Well, Roxas doesn't anyone else he cares about to get hurt, so that's why he's being stupid. :/ And RUBY. WE TALKED ABOUT THIS. I appreciate the praise, but you know, flattery is not gonna help. *sighs***

**Aura: You'll live! :D**

**_Muffinmilk317_- I don't want him to join either! Oh ho...his friends might come and help whether he wants them to or not...XD**

**_dario. flaman_- Xaldin has spears! Or lances, but he won't stab her. :P Who knows if Axel will help? He can't do much under the Organization's control...and Neku is like that. Apparently, Roxas did something that he'll never forgive him for...and yep! XD I see you are GENRE SAVVY!**

**Favs: **

**So, _KHgirl2013_ joins the Fav party! HOORAY! :D**

**Follows:**

**...no new follows. I HAVE HOPE THOUGH!**

**SO! Last time, Roxas got taken to the hospital after Tifa found him unconscious after the ambush. When he woke up, everyone found out what happened, and their fears for Ven's safety grew. Meanwhile, Ven experienced his first night at the gang's HQ, where he was mercilessly tortured by Larxene after demanding to know from Axel why he didn't try to help his friend. **

**Now, Roxas is shutting his older brother Cloud and is friends out in order to keep them safe as he tries to save Ven. So, will he end up rejoining his old gang? Or will he end up accepting his friends' help at last? And who will end up being, pardon my language, a big damn hero? LET'S FIND OUT!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. No, I do not own Final Fantasy. I don't own TWEWY, no I don't own them at all!**

**Aura: But she does own me!~**

* * *

"THIS IS SO STUPID!"

Aura was fuming as she and Riku walked home. They had separated from the others after they left the hospital, with each going to where their neighborhoods were.

Aura, however, decided she could not go home yet, so she was going to Riku's house, ranting.

"I mean, HONESTLY!" she yelled. "If he couldn't handle two of them, what makes him think he can beat them in his state of health? Plus, we're Ven's friends! So what if we get hurt, we'll freaking heal, he should stop being so freaking STUBBORN-"

"Aura." Aura stopped and looked at Riku. He had remained calm and silent throughout her entire rant-until now. He looked at her.

"Roxas just witnessed his own brother getting kidnapped. He also got easily defeated by people he most likely thought he could defeat. At the very least, his mind has been shaken." He looked at the sunset.

"You can't really blame him for not wanting us to interfere." He sighed. "And so because of that, I think he knows what it means for him-and what he may have to do."

Aura bit her lip at that. "So...what does this mean then? We just stand and do nothing except hoping for the best?" she asked. Riku looked at her again. He raised an eyebrow.

"We could...but then we'd be bad friends, right?"

* * *

Kairi was quiet as she walked home alone. She was very worried for both Ven and Roxas, and her thoughts were swirling about the twins.

She wanted to help, but even if Roxas let her, what could she do? She sighed as she stopped and looked at her hand. She furrowed her brow as she concentrated on making a light sphere appear in her hand.

She then yelped as the small sparks that had appeared shocked her, leaving her with a few minor burns on her hand. "OW! Ow ow ow!" she yelled, before ending the attempt. She stared at her hand.

"Ow..."

"What's wrong, Kairi?" Kairi jumped before turning to see Sora running up to her. She blinked. "Sora! What are you doing here?" she asked, trying to hide her hand.

"Oh, I came to give back your Powers textbook. I thought you might need it." He noticed her injured hand, eyes widening. "And I see I was right! Let me see it!" he ordered.

Timidly, Kairi put out her hand, which Sora examined. "I was trying to summon a light sphere," she explained sheepishly, "...but it didn't work."

"Why did you try to hide it?" he asked, looking up at her with concerned eyes. She glanced away as she answered. "I was kind of embarrassed...I was going to treat it as soon as I got home."

Sora laughed slightly. "Oh Kairi, it's ok! There's no need to be embarrassed!" he exclaimed. He looked at the burns again, and tilted his head.

Kairi yelped when she felt something wet on her hand. She looked quickly and stared at what she saw. "Sora...what are you DOING?" she asked, slightly disgusted and slightly flustered.

Sora was licking her hand with his tongue. It felt very rough and tickled her hand. He continued licking it before pulling away. He smiled happily.

"I was licking your hand!" "Ok...Why though?..." she asked, mystified. He smiled.

"Werewolves' spit have healing properties!" he chirped, as if that was obvious. She blinked.

"O-oh...I actually didn't know that..." she said, feeling awkward. Some of Sora's spit began to drip from her hand.

Sora noticed though and he quickly ripped off part of his shirt. "Here, let me wrap that up!" he said, using he material to make a makeshift bandage.

"Oh, Sora, you didn't have to do that! Now your shirt's ruined." Kairi protested. He smiled cheekily at her. "It was worth it." he said. He finished wrapping it up.

Kairi blushed and mumbled thanks before she began walking back home. Sora followed her. "Hey Kairi? It's ok if I stay at your place for awhile, right?" he asked. "R-right!" she replied, stammering.

For some reason, when he had smiled at her, she felt something warm in her soar. It had left her feeling dazed, almost. It was strange, but she decided to push it away for now. She'd figure it out later.

"Sora...what should we do?" She looked up at the sky. "Ven's in danger and possibly hurt, but Roxas doesn't want us to help even though he's hurt himself. Time's running out-and I'm getting more worried with each second."

Sora tilted his head. "Well...I'm not exactly sure. I mean, Roxas doesn't want us getting hurt, so we should respect his wishes. But Ven's our friend-I don't think letting him go by himself to save Ven is a good idea."

"Yeah, that's true." Kairi sighed. "I want to help badly-but with me being unable to control my powers, there's not much I can do..."

Sora looked at her firmly. "So you're just going to give up? You can't! You have to keep trying, Kairi-isn't there a mortal saying that goes like, 'Try again if you fail'? Wait, that doesn't sound right..." he muttered. Kairi giggled.

"I think you mean 'If at first you don't succeed, try, try again'." She smiled. "But I get what you mean Sora, and you're right. I can't give up. It's going to be hard, but eventually I'll figure it out." She then sighed.

"What are we going to do about Roxas and Ven though?..." she mumbled, before something flew into Sora's face. He panicked.

"AHHH! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF! HELP-I'VE GONE BLIND!" he cried out, running around in a circle.

Kairi managed to grab the piece of paper that had landed on Sora's face. He sighed in relief. "Ah...that really scared me." he said.

Meanwhile, Kairi was reading the paper. "Sora-this is from Aura!" she exclaimed. Sora blinked. "What? Aura tried to blind me?! WHAT DID I DO?!" he shouted, panicking.

"Nothing, silly! She sent us a letter and then used a wind spell to send it to us. It just landed on your face by accident." Kairi explained as she continued reading. She gasped.

"I can't believe this..."

"What? What does it say? What does it say?" Sora asked anxiously, before another paper flew into his face. "AHHH! NOT AGAIN!" he cried out, clawing at the paper before taking it off. Kairi laughed.

"Hey! It's mean to laugh at other people!" he said, pouting at her, He then looked at the paper. "Hey, this is from Aura-and it's addressed to me!" He cleared his throat before reading it aloud.

"Dear Sora, I hope this letter reaches you-and if it landed on your face, sorry." He made an annoyed face before continuing. "Anyway, Riku and I have decided we're going to ignore Roxas and just help him out."

"We'll be following him as he goes to Nocturne Valley. Meet up at Riku's house in the morning tomorrow to learn more. From, Aura. P.S, Get plenty of rest, P.S.S. Does anyone have the notes for the Math quiz on Monday? P.S.S.S, Ha Ha made you all freak out, didn't I?"

"Final Note: I have no regrets, Final Note P.S: I thought I needed to lighten the mood, FINAL final note: See you in the morning, but don't expect me to be my usual self." Sora sweatdropped. Kairi laughed. "That's Aura for you!" she exclaimed.

She then smiled. "So...it looks like we'll be helping after all." she said. "I hope they have a good plan."

Sora smiled happily. "I'm sure they do!" He looked up at the sky. "Watch out gang members! WE'RE GOING TO BRING YOU DOWN!" he vowed, looking confident.

* * *

Ven shivered. His burns still hadn't healed from the ropes he spent the night in. He could barely move, as even the slightest movement caused him much pain.

Even his slight shiver sent jolts of pain into him-he didn't cry out, though. His throat was sore from all the screaming he had done the night before.

So he just laid on the floor of his cell, trying to sleep but unable to do so. (The floor wasn't very comfortable.) That, along with his fears of Larxene or another member returning, kept him wide awake.

Suddenly he heard footsteps coming toward his cell. Despite his wounds, he started shivering in fear. He was facing away from the door, so he couldn't see who it was.

They stopped in front of his door, before unlocking it. As they stepped toward him, Ven closed his eyes, shivering even more. He wanted to go home...

Just when he was expecting the worse, he felt something warm get thrown over him before he was carried out in the person's arms. He wondered if he had finally managed to sleep; it seemed like a dream.

He heard a door open before he was laid down carefully onto a soft bed. Then he heard the door close. Ven decided to open his eyes and he found he was in a white room, with only a candle for light.

He was on the bed, but nothing in the room indicated who it belonged to or who had brought him here. He struggled to move, before stopping as he was still in great pain.

The door then opened. Ven looked over to see none other than Axel walk in, with no coat on and arms full of medical supplies. As he put them down on a nightstand, Axel looked over at him.

"Ahh, so you're still alive. Well that's good." he commented as he began mixing some ingredients together. He then poured the mixture into a cup and put it to Ven's lips.

"Drink this. It'll help your sore throat." he said. Ven looked at him suspiciously but decided to drink it. After he was done, Ven could feel his sore throat disappearing. Soon he was able to talk again. He looked at Axel.

"Why...why are you helping me?" he asked weakly. Axel had his back to him as he put together another mixture. "...because Larxene went too far. She always does." he responded. He then looked at him.

"...and because Roxas would never forgive me if I left his twin brother to die." He then spread the new mixture over his wounds. Ven winced, before a pleasant cooling sensation settled on his body. He sighed in relief.

Axel smiled. "Looks like it's working if you're sighing like that. Let me just wrap you up in some bandages..." he said, as he started to do so. He only placed bandages on the most major wounds, as the smaller ones were healing and then disappearing.

He then went to Ven's shoulder to examine the stab wound. He winced. "Yeowch...looks like it hurt." He then got a cotton wipe before pouring some rubbing alcohol on it. "Watch out, this is going to sting." he warned before wiping the wound.

Ven cried out in pain, causing Axel to cover his mouth. "SHH! You have to be quiet! If anyone finds you here, they'll kill you on the spot!" he hissed before giving him a cloth to bite on. Ven tried hard to stay quiet, but the pain was very intense.

Afterwards, Axel placed the mixture on it, before wrapping it up in bandages as well. "Alright, just one last thing and then you'll be fine." he said before he got out a small bag filled with red liquid.

Ven's eyes widened. "What-no You can't expect me to drink THAT!" he whispered loudly. (?) Axel blinked before shaking his head. "No, it's not human blood! It's regular animal blood, I promise you that. You can even smell it to make sure." he said, before opening the bag.

Ven leaned forward as best he could and sniffed it. Sure enough, it didn't smell anything like human blood. _In fact, it smells like blood taken from a cow. _Ven thought in his mind.

"...alright. I'll drink it." Ven said, nodding his consent. Axel smiled in relief before pouring the bag into an empty cup. He then gave it to Ven, who was now able to hold the cup himself. As he slowly drank the blood, he could feel himself growing stronger and more rejuvenated.

Axel nodded in approval as he saw Ven's skin grow less pale."There we go, that's better." he said. Ven looked at Axel. "Axel..." He hesitated slightly before saying, "...thank you."

Axel smiled. "No problem!" He then grew serious. "Just try not to provoke Larxene or any other member for this night and tomorrow, alright? Then you'll be fine." he said.

Ven frowned. "Axel...do you want Roxas to return?" he asked. Axel looked the window at the near full moon. He sighed. "Part of me does...and part of me doesn't. I really don't know."

He then got up. "Alright-sorry but, I'm going to have to take you back to the cell. If you stay in a corner for awhile, you should be fine. " He then picked him up and covered him with his cloak.

Ven was quiet the whole way. As they got near his cell, he spoke. "Axel...I want to go home." he said softly.

Axel was silent for a moment, then he said, "...I know you do. You'll be fine-got that memorized?" he asked, attempting to get a smile from the boy as he tapped his head.

Ven smiled slightly, and nodded. He then stepped into his cell, before sitting down in a corner. As Axel locked the cell door, and walked away, he wondered if he had a friend in this place.

* * *

Roxas looked at the moon, a neutral look on his face.

He was back in his room on his bed, almost completely healed. Despite that, Cloud wanted him to get some rest.

He knew time was running out, and he had to make a decision. Rejoin, or let Ven die?...

He clenched his fists. Ven never deserved to get hurt. He was a sweet, caring boy, who always somehow brought out the good in others.

Roxas used to envy that, and hated him for it. Now, he found it an admiring trait.

He wasn't quite sure how Ven saw them, but he saw himself and Ven as complete opposites-one drawn to light, the other drawn to darkness. One beloved by all, the other repulsed by some.

One good, one bad.

One perfect, one flawed.

Like yin and yang.

Roxas sighed. Things had changed since they were kids. Back then, things were very simple. Back then, he and Ven were the best of brothers, always near each other.

Then he had nearly destroyed that relationship.

His eyes saddened. All those years, where he fell into a sort of depression before becoming angry at the world-most specifically, Ven.

He directed all his hatred toward him. He called him horrible names.

And yet Ven still smiled at him, still told him he loved him.

How was he able to do that?...still able to forgive him despite everything Roxas had done?...

He wasn't sure. But one thing was certain:

He had dragged Ven into this mess. And now he had to get him out.

Even if it meant he had to be cut off from Ven forevermore.

* * *

**Man...talk about intense. SO! Time's running out! What's Roxas going to do? What are Riku and Aura planning? Will Axel somehow help Ven out? The answer is...IN THE NEXT CHAPTER! XD**

**Please leave a review, advice is appreciated, and flames will be blown out by the wind...**

**Aura: Woosh, WOOSH!~ *giggles***


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